THE  LIBRARY  OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF 

NORTH  CAROLINA 

AT  CHAPEL  HILL 


VAN  LENNEP  —  CAMERON 
COLLECTION 


/ 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2012  with  funding  from 

University  of  North  Carolina  at  Chapel  Hill 


http://archive.org/details/sketchesoflifechwirt 


''■t. 


. 


4-        U//1 


,  /r  '  cry-**    a  «  ^ 

■ 


■  '"'■  ■     I 


Stdlv  Puw? 


PTTBELSHED  BY  J  ."WEBSTER. 


3PiOTBM/3K.  JBDEHRTTo 


Ijli/ffj  •h.-.'r.hhj  It'lii  of (Wti/rf/s  ///,-  'jf,i,n-  o/\>(ju '.' 'J$Tfo J,im,y f/ffis&r o/'i/tr  Sr.tftiifllrtn.y/m 


SKETCflES^w^^:^ 


PHILADELPHIA  : 

PUBLISHED  BY  JAMES  WEBSTER,  No.  10,  S.  EIGHTH  STREET. 
William  Brown,  Printer,  Prune-street. 

1847- 


•     .  V." 


v... 


iW.nirt  *7M  <**  ti&SSrCm'J*"**"*  A***!**-* 


S <&£  TG  HE  QflfajUt^^^^. 


OF    THE 


&0  C- 


LIFE  AND  CHARACTI 


OF 


PATRICK  HENRY. 


BY 


WILLIAM  WIRT, 


OF    RICHMOND,    VIRGINIA. 


"  In  quo  hoc  maximum  est,  quod  neque  ante  ilium,  quem  ille  imitaretur, 
neque  post  ilium,  qui  eum  imitari  posset,  inventus  est." 

Paterc.  lib.  i.  cap.  v. 


PHILADELPHIA  : 

PUBLISHED  BY  JAMES  WEBSTER,  No.  10,  S.  EIGHTH  STREET. 
William  Brown,  Printer,  Prune-street. 


District  of  Pennsylvania,  to  wit : 

BE  IT  REMEMBERED,  That,  on  the  eleventh  day  of"  October,  in  the  forty. 
second  year  of  the  Independence  of  the  United  States  of  America,  A.  D.  1817, 
James  Webster,  of  the  said  District,  hath  deposited  in  this  office  the  title  of  a 
book,  the  right  whereof  he  claims  as  proprietor,  in  the  words  following',  to  wit : 

"  Sketches  of  the  Life  and  Character  of  Patrick  Henry.  By  William  Wirt,  of 
"  Richmond,  Virginia.  In  quo  hoc  maximum  est,  quod  neque  ante  ilium, 
"  quern  ille  imitaretur,  neque  post  ilium,  qui  eum  imitari  posset,  inventus 
"•  est.  Paterc.  lib.  i.  cap.  v." 


«, 


In  conformity  to  the  act  of  the  Congress  of  the  United  States,  entitled  "  An 
act  for  the  encouragement  of  learning,  by  securing  the  copies  of  maps,  charts, 
and  books,  to  the  authors  and  proprietors  of  such  copies,  during  the  times 
therein  mentioned." — And  also  to  the  act,  entitled  "  An  act  supplementary  to 
an  act,  entitled  '  An  act  for  the  encouragement  of  learning  by  securing  the  co- 
pies of  maps,  charts,  and  books,  to  the  authors  and  proprietors  of  such  copies, 
during  the  times  therein  mentioned,'  and  extending  the  benefits  thereof  to  the 
arts  of  designing,  engraving,  and  etching  historical  and  other  prints." 

D.  CALDWELL, 

Clerk  of  the  district  of  Pennsylvania. 


TO 

THE  YOUNG  MEN  OF  VIRGINIA, 

THIS  WORK 

IS  RESPECTFULLY  INSCRIBED, 

BY 

HlHE  AUTHOIf- 


PREFACE. 

The  reader  has  a  right  to  know  what  degree  of 
credit  is  due  to  the  following  narrative ;  and  it  is  the 
object  of  this  preface  to  give  him  that  satisfaction. 

It  was  in  the  summer  of  1805  that  the  design  of  writing 
this  biography  was  first  conceived.    It  was  produced  by 
an  incident  of  feeling,  which  however  it  affected  the  au- 
thor at  the  time,  might  now,  be  thought  light  and  tri- 
vial by  the  reader ;  and  he  shall  not  therefore,  be  de- 
tained by  the  recital  of  it.     The  author  knew  nothing 
of  Mr.  Henry,  personally.  He  had  never  seen  him; 
and  was  of  course,  compelled  to  rely  wholly  on  the 
information  of  others.    As  soon,  therefore,  as  the  design 
was  formed  of  writing  his  life,  aware  of  the  necessity  of 
losing  no  time,  in  collecting  from  the  few  remaining  co- 
evals of  Mr.  Henry,  that  personal  knowledge  of  the 
subject  which  might  erelong  be  expected  to  die  with 
them,  the  author  despatched  letters  to  every  quarter  of 
the  state  in  which  it  occurred  to  him  as  probable,  that 
interesting  matter  might  be  found ;  and  he  was  gratified 
by  the  prompt  attention  which  was  paid  to  his  inquiries. 


vi  PREFACED 

There  were  at  that  time,  living  in  the  county  of  Ha- 
uover,  three  gentlemen  of  the  first  respectability,  who 
had  been  the  companions  of  Mr.  Henry's  childhood  and 
youth :  these  were,  col.  Charles  Dabney,  capt.  George 
Dabney,  and  col.  William  O.  Winston ;  the  two  first  of 
whom  are  still  living.     Not  having  the  pleasure  of  a 
personal  acquaintance  with  these  gentlemen,  the  author 
interested  the  late  Mr.  Nathaniel  Pope  in  his  object, 
and  by  his  instrumentality,  procured  all  the  useful  in- 
formation which  was  in  their  possession.     Mr.  Pope  is 
well  known  to  have  been  a  gentleman  of  uncommonly 
vigorous  and  discriminating  mind ;  a  sacred  observer  of 
truth,  and  a  man  of  the  purest  sense  of  honour.     The 
author  cannot  recal  the  memory  of  this  most  amiable 
and  excellent  man,  to  whom  (if  there  be  any  merit  in 
this  work)  the  friends  of  Mr.  Henry  and  the  state  of  Vir- 
ginia owe  so  many  obligations,  without  paying  to  that 
revered  memory,  the  tribute  of  his  respect  and  affection. 
Mr.  Pope  was  one  of  those  ardent  young  Virginians, 
who  embarked,  before  they  had  attained  their  maturity,  in 
the  cause  of  the  American  revolution :  he  joined  an  ani- 
mated and  active  corps  of  horse,  and  signalized  himself 
by  au  impetuous  gallantry,  which  drew  upon  him  the 
eyes  and  the  applause  of  his  commander.     In  peace,  he 
was  as  mild  as  he  had  been  brave  in  war ;  his  bosom 


PREFACE.  vu 

was  replete  with  the  kindest  affections;  he  was  in 
truth,  one  of  the  hest  of  companions,  and  one  of  the 
warmest  of  friends.  The  fact,  that  he  was  the  acknow- 
ledged head  of  the  several  bars  at  which  he  practised 
in  the  country,  may  assure  the  reader  of  his  capacity 
for  the  commission  which  he  so  cheerfully  undertook,  in 
regard  to  Mr.  Henry  ;  and  the  unblemished  integrity  of 
his  life  may  assure  him  also,  of  the  fidelity  with  which 
that  commission  was  executed.  So  many  important 
anecdotes  in  the  following  work,  depend  on  the  credit 
of  this  gentleman  as  a  witness,  that  the  slight  sketch 
which  has  been  given  of  his  character  will  not,  it  is 
hoped,  be  thought  foreign  to  the  purpose  of  this  pre- 
face. Mr.  Pope  did  not  confine  his  inquiries  to  the 
county  of  Hanover  :  he  was  indefatigable  in  collecting 
information  from  every  quarter;  which  he  never  ac- 
cepted however,  but  from  the  purest  sources ;  and  his 
authority  for  every  incident  was  given,  with  the  most 
scrupulous  accuracy.  The  author  had  hoped  to  have 
had  it  in  his  power  to  gratify  this  gentleman  by  sub- 
mitting to  his  view  the  joint  result  of  their  labours,  and 
obtaining  the  benefit  of  his  last  corrections  ;  but  he  was 
disappointed  by  his  untimely  and  melancholy  death. 
He  fell  a  victim  to  that  savage  practice,  which  under 
ihe  false  name  of  honour,  continued  to  prevail  too  long; 


vm  PREFACE. 

and  his  death  is  believed  to  have  been  highly  instru- 
mental in  hastening  that  system  of  legislation  in  re- 
straint of  this  practice,  which  now  exists  in  Virginia. 

Besides  the  contributions  furnished  by  Mr.  Pope,  the 
writer  derived  material  aid  from  various  other  quarters. 
The  widow  of  Mr.  Henry  was  still  living,  and  had  in- 
termarried with  judge  Winston  :  from  this  gentleman, 
(who  was  also  related  to  Mr.  Henry  by  blood,  and  had 
been  intimately  acquainted  with  him  through  the  far 
greater  part  of  his  life)  the  author  received  a  succinct, 
but  extremely  accurate  and  comprehensive  memoir. 

Col.  Meredith  of  Amherst,  was  a  few  years  older 
than  Mr.  Henry,  had  been  raised  in  the  same  neigh- 
bourhood, and  had  finally  married  one  of  his  sisters. 
Having  known  Mr.  Henry,  from  his  birth  to  his  death, 
he  had  it  in  his  power  to  supply  very  copious  details, 
which  were  taken  down  from  his  narration  by  the  pre- 
sent judge  Cabell,  and  forwarded  to  the  author. 

One  of  the  most  intimate  and  confidential  friends  of 
Mr.  Henry,  was  the  late  judge  Tyler.  The  judge  had 
a  kind  of  Roman  frankness  and  even  bluntness  in  his 
manners,  together  with  a  decision  of  character  and  a  be- 
nevolence of  spirit,  which  had  attached  Mr.  Henry  to 
him,  from  his  first  appearance  on  the  public  stage. 
They  were,  for  a  long  time,  members  of  the  house  of 


PREFACE.  ix 

delegates  together,  and  their  friendship  continued  until 
it  was  severed  by  death.  From  judge  Tyler,  the  au- 
thor received  a  very  minute  and  interesting  communica- 
tion of  incidents,  the  whole  of  which  had  either  passed 
in  his  own  presence,  or  had  been  related  to  him  by  Mr. 
Henry  himself. 

The  writer  is  indebted  to  judge  Tucker  for  two  or 
three  of  his  best  incidents  ;  one  of  them  will  probably, 
be  pronounced  the  most  interesting  passage  of  the  work. 
He  owes  to  the  same  gentleman  too,  the  fullest  and  live- 
liest description  of  the  person  of  Mr.  Henry,  which  has 
been  furnished  from  any  quarter  :  and  he  stands  farther 
indebted  to  him  for  a  rare  and  (to  the  purpose  of  this 
work)  a  very  important  book ;  the  journals  of  the  house 
of  burgesses  for  the  years  1763-4-5-6  and  7« 

From  judge  Roane,  the  author  has  received  one  of  the 
fairest  and  most  satisfactory  communications  that  has 
been  made  to  him ;  and  the  vigour  and  elegance  with 
which  that  gentleman  writes,  has  frequently  enabled 
the  author,  to  relieve  the  dulness  of  his  own  narrative, 
by  extracts  from  his  statements. 

Mr.  Jefferson  too,  has    exercised  his  well  known 

kindness  and  candour  on  this  occasion;  having  not  only 

favoured  the  author  with  a  very  full  communication  in 

the  first  instance ;  but  assisted  him,  subsequently  and  re- 

b 


x  PREFACE. 

peatedly,  with  his  able  counsel,  in  reconciling  apparent 
Contradictions,  and  clearing  away  difficulties  of  fact. 

Besides  these  statements,  drawn  from  the  memory  of 
his  correspondents,  the  writer  was  favoured  by  the  late 
governor  Page,  with  the  reading  of  a  pretty  extended 
sketch  wliich  he  had,  himself,  prepared  of  the  life  of 
Mr.  Henry :  and  he  has,  furthermore,  availed  himself 
of  the  kind  permission  of  Mr.  Peyton  Randolph,  to 
examine  an  extremely  valuable  manuscript  history  of 
Virginia,  written  by  his  father,  the  late  Mr.  Edmund 
Randolph ;  which  embraces  the  whole  period  of  Mr. 
Henry's  public  life. 

In  addition  to  these  stores  of  information,  the  author 
has  had  the  good  fortune  to  procure  complete  files  of  the 
public  newspapers,  reaching  from  the  year  1765  down 
to  the  close  of  the  American  revolution;  by  these,  he 
has  been  enabled  to  correct,  in  some  important  instances, 
the  memory  of  his  correspondents,  in  relation  not  only 
to  dates,  but  to  facts  themselves. 

He  has  been  fortunate  too,  in  having  procured  seve- 
ral original  letters  which  shed  much  light  on  important 
and  hitherto  disputed  facts,  in  the,  life  of  Mr.  Henry. 

The  records  of  the  general  court,  and  the  archives  of 
the  state  having  been  convenient  to  the  author,  and  al- 
ways open  to  him,  he  has  endeavoured   assiduously 


PREFACE.  xi 

and  carefully,  to  avail  himself  of  that  certain  and  per- 
manent evidence  which  they  afford  ;  and  has  been  ena- 
bled, by  this  means,  as  the  reader  will  discover,  to  cor- 
rect some  strange  mistakes  in  historical  facts. 

The  author's  correspondents  will  find,  that  he  has  de- 
parted in  some  instances,  from  their  respective  state- 
ments ;  and  he  owes  them  an  explanation  for  having 
done  so  :  the  explanation  is  this  ;  their  statements  were, 
in  several  instances,  diametrically  opposed  to  each 
other;  and  were  sometimes,  all  contradicted  by  the 
public  prints,  or  the  records  of  the  state.  It  ought  not 
to  be  matter  of  surprise  that  these  contradictions  should 
exist,  even  among  those  most  respectable  gentlemen,  re- 
lying as  they  did,  upon  human  memory  merely ;  and 
speaking  of  events  so  very  remote,  without  a  previous 
opportunity  of  communicating  with  each  other.  It 
will  be  seen  by  them,  that  the  author  has  been  obliged 
in  several  instances,  to  contradict  even  the  several  his- 
tories of  the  times,  concerning  which  he  writes  :  but  this 
he  has  never  done,  without  the  most  decisive  proofs  of 
his  own  correctness,  which  he  has  always  cited :  nor  has 
he  ever  departed  from  the  narratives  of  his  several  cor- 
respondents, except  under  the  direction  of  preponderat- 
ing evidence.  As  among  those  contradictory  statements, 
all  could  not  be  true,  he  has  sought  the  correction  by 


xii  PREFACE. 

public  documents  when  such  correction  was  attainable  ; 
and  when  it  was  not,  he  has  selected  among  his  nar- 
rators, those,  whose  opportunities  to  know  the  fact  in 
question,  seemed  to  be  the  best.  This  he  has  done, 
without  the  slightest  intention  to  throw  a  shadow  of  sus- 
picion on  the  credit  of  any  gentleman,  who  has  been  so 
obliging  as  to  answer  his  inquiries  ;  but  merely  from  the 
necessity  which  he  was  under,  either  of  making  some 
selection,  or  abandoning  the  work  altogether ;  and  be- 
cause he  knew  of  no  better  rule  of  selection,  than  that 
which  he  has  adopted. 

Although  it  has  been  so  long  since  the  collection  of 
these  materials  was  begun,  it  was  not  until  the  summer 
of  1814  that  the  last  communication  was  received.  Even 
then,  when  the  author  sat  down  to  the  task  of  embody- 
ing his  materials,  there  were  so  many  intricacies  to  dis- 
entangle, and  so  many  inconsistencies,  from  time  to  time, 
to  explain  and  settle,  and  that  too,  through  the  tedious 
agency  of  cross-mails,  that  his  progress  was  continually 
impeded,  and  has  been,  to  him,  most  painfully,  retarded. 

Other  causes  too,  have  contributed  to  delay  the  pub- 
lication. The  author  is  a  practising  lawyer ;  and  the 
courts  which  he  attends,  keep  him  perpetually  and  ex- 
clusively occupied,  in  that  attendance,  through  ten 
months  of  the  year :  nor  does  the  summer  recess,  of 


PREFACE.  xiu 

two  months,  afford  a  remission  from  professional  la- 
bour. In  Virginia,  the  duties  of  attorney,  counsellor, 
conveyancer,  and  advocate,  are  all  performed  by  the 
same  individual ;  hence  the  summer  vacation,  instead  of 
being  a  time  of  leisure,  is  not  only  the  season  of  prepa- 
ration for  the  approaching  courts,  but  is  subject  more- 
over, to  a  perpetual  recurrence  of  what  are  here  called 
office  duties,  which  renders  a  steady  application  to  any 
other  subject  impossible. 

These  sketches,  are  now  submitted  to  the  public, 
with  unaffected  diffidence ;  not  of  the  facts  which  they 
detail,  for  on  them,  the  author  has  the  firmest  reliance; 
but  of  the  manner  in  which  he  has  been  able  to  accom- 
plish his  undertaking.  For  (to  say  nothing  of  his  inex- 
perience and  want  of  ability  for  such  a  work)  he  has 
been  compelled  to  write  (when  he  was  suffered  to  write 
at  all)  amidst  that  incessant  professional  annoyance 
which  has  been  mentioned,  and  which  is  known  by 
every  man,  who  has  ever  made  the  trial,  to  forbid  the 
hope  of  success  in  any  composition  of  this  extent.  Could 
the  writer  have  looked  forward,  with  any  reasonable 
calculation,  to  a  period  of  greater  ease,  his  respect  for 
the  memory  of  Mr.  Henry,  as  well  as  his  regard  for 
himself,  would  have  induced  him  to  suspend  this  under- 
taking, until  that  period  should  have  arrived.    But  hav- 


xiv  PREFACE. 

ing  no  ground  for  any  hope  of  this  kind,  he  has  thought 
it  better  to  hazard  even  these  crude  sketches,  than  to 
suffer  the  materials  which  he  had  accumulated  with  so 
much  toil,  and  for  an  object  which  he  thought  so  lauda- 
ble, to  perish  on  his  hands. 

These  remarks  are  not  made  with  the  view  of  depre- 
cating the  censures  of  critics  by  profession :  but  merely 
to  bespeak  the  candour  of  that  larger  portion  of  readers 
who  are  willing  to  be  pleased  with  the  best  efforts  that 
can  be  reasonably  expected,  from  the  circumstances  of 
the  case.  The  author  however,  is  well  satisfied,  that 
the  most  indulgent  reader  (although  benevolently  dis- 
posed to  overlook  defects  of  execution)  will  be  certainly 
disappointed  in  the  matter  itself,  of  this  work ;  for  not- 
withstanding all  his  exertions,  he  is  entirely  conscious 
that  the  materials  which  he  has  been  able  to  collect  are 
scanty  and  meagre,  and  utterly  disproportionate  to  the 
great  fame  of  Mr.  Henry.  It  is  probable,  that  much  of 
what  was  once  known  of  him,  had  perished  before  the 
author  commenced  his  researches ;  and  it  is  very  possible 
that  much  may  still  be  known,  which  he  has  not  been 
able  to  discover ;  because  it  lies  in  unsuspected  sources, 
or  with  persons  unwilling  for  some  reason  or  other,  to 
communicate  their  information.  It  is  the  conviction  that 
he  has  not  been  able  to  inform  himself  of  the  whole 


PREFACE.  xv 

events  of  Mr.  Henry's  life,  and  that  his  collection  can 
be  considered  only  as  so  many  detached  sketches, 
which  has  induced  him  to  prefix  this  name  to  his  book. 
If,  in  this  humble  and  unassuming  character,  it  shall  give 
any  pleasure  to  the  numerous  admirers  of  Mr.  Henry, 
in  Virginia,  the  author  will  have  attained  all  that  he  has 
a  right  to  expect. 


RICHMOND,  VmeiwiA,  £ 
Sept.  5th,  1817.         3 


SKETCHES 


OF  THE 


LIFE  OF  PATRICK  HENRY. 


SECTION  I. 


PATRICK  HENRY,  the  second  son  of  John  and 
Sarah  Henry,  and  one  of  nine  children,  was  born  on  the 
29th  of  May  1736,  at  the  family  seat,  called  Studley,  in 
the  county  of  Hanover  and  colony  of  Virginia.  In  his 
early  childhood,  his  parents  removed  to  another  seat  in 
the  same  county,  then  called  Mount  Brilliant,  now  the 
Retreat;  at  which  latter  place,  Patrick  Henry  was  raised 
and  educated.  His  parents,  though  not  rich,  were  in 
easy  circumstances;  and,  in  point  of  personal  character, 
were  among  the  most  respectable  inhabitants  of  the  co- 
lony. 

His  father,  col.  John  Henry,  was  a  native  of  Aberdeen, 
in  Scotland.  He  was,  it  is  said,  a  first  cousin  to  David 
Henry,  who  was  the  brother-in-law  and  successor  of 
Edward  Cave,  in  the  publication  of  that  celebrated  work, 
The  Gentleman's  Magazine,  and,  himself,  the  author  of 
several  literary  tracts  :  John  Henry,  is,  also  said  to  have 
been  a  nephew,  in  the  maternal  line,  to  the  great  histo- 
rian Dr.  William  Robertson.  He  came  over  to  Virginia, 
in  quest  of  fortune,  some  time  prior  to  the  year  1 730,  and 

A 


«  SKETCHES    OF   THE 

the  tradition  is,  that  he  enjoyed  the  friendship  and  patron- 
age of  Mr.  Dinwiddie,  afterwards  the  governor  of  the 
colony.     By  this  gentleman,  it  is  reported,  that  he  was 
introduced  to  the  elder  col.  Syme  of  Hanover,  in  whose 
family,  it  is  certain,  that  he  became  domesticated  dur- 
ing the  life  of  that  gentleman,  after  whose  death,  he 
intermarried  with  his  widow,  and  resided  on  the  estate 
which  he  had  left.     It  is  considered  as  a  fair  proof  of  the 
personal  merit  of  Mr.  John  Henry,  that,  in  those  days, 
when  offices  were  bestowed  with  peculiar  caution,  he 
was  the  colonel  of  his  regiment,  the  principal  surveyor  of 
the  county,  and  for  many  years,  the  presiding  magistrate 
of  the  county  court.  His  surviving  acquaintances  con- 
cur in  stating,  that  he  was  a  man  of  liberal  education, 
that  he  possessed  a  plain,  yet  solid  understanding;  and  liv- 
ed long  a  life  of  the  most  irreproachable  integrity,  and  ex- 
emplary piety.  His  brother  Patrick,  a  clergyman  of  the 
church  of  England,  followed  him  to  this  country  some 
years  afterwards;  and  became,  by  Ms  influence,  the  minis- 
ter of  St.  Paul's  parish  in  Hanover,  the  functions  of  which 
office  he  sustained  throughout  life  with  great  respecta- 
bility. Both  the  brothers  were  zealous  members  of  the 
established  church,  and  warmly  attached  to  the  reigning 
family.  Col.  John  Henry  was  conspicuously  so:  "there 
are  those  yet  alive,"  says  a  correspondent,*  "-who  have 
seen  him,  at  the  head  of  his  regiment,  celebrating  the 
birth  day  of  George  the  III.  with  as  much  enthusiasm, 
as  his  son  Patrick,  afterwards,  displayed,  in  resisting  the 
encroachment  of  that  monarch."! 
Mrs.  Henry,  the  widow  of  col.  Syme,  as  we  have  seen, 

*  Mr.  Pope,  in  1805. 

f  Mr.  Burk's  account  of  Mr.  Henry  is  extremely  careless  and  full  of  er- 
rors. He  begins  by  making  him  the  son  of  his  uncle  :  "  Patrick  Henry,  the 
son  of  a  Scotch  gentleman  of  the  same  name,  he."  3d  vol.  of  the  History  of 
Virginia,  page  300. 

R3C 


■  \ 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  J 

and  the  mother  of  Patrick  Henry,  was  a  native  of  Hano- 
ver County,  and  of  the  family  of  Winstons.  She  pos- 
sessed, in  an  eminent  degree,  the  mild  and  benevolent 
disposition,  the  undeviating  probity,  the  correct  under- 
standing and  easy  elocution  by  which  that  ancient  family 
has  been  so  long  distinguished.  Her  brother  William, 
the  father  of  the  present  judge  Winston,  is  said  to  have 
been  highly  endowed  with  that  peculiar  cast  of  elo- 
quence, for  which  Mr.  Heniy  became,  afterwards,  so 
justly  celebrated.  Of  this  gentleman  I  have  an  anec- 
dote from  a  correspondent,*  which  I  shall  give  in  his 
own  words.  "  I  have  often  heard  my  father,  who  was 
intimately  acquainted  with  this  William  Winston,  say, 
that  he  was  the  greatest  orator  whom  he  ever  heard, 
Patrick  Henry  excepted;  that  during  the  last  French  and 
Indian  war,  and  soon  after  Braddock's  defeat,  when  the 
militia  were  marched  to  the  frontiers  of  Virginia,  against 
the  enemy,  this  William  Winston  was  the  lieutenant  of  a 
company;  that  the  men,  who  were  indifferently  clothed, 
without  tents,  and  exposed  to  the  rigour  and  inclemency  of 
the  weather,  discovered  great  aversion  to  the  service,  and 
were  anxious  and  even  clamorous  to  return  to  their  fami- 
lies; when  this  William  Winston,  mounting  a  stump,  (the 
common  rostrum,  you  know,  of  the  field  orator  of  Virgi- 
nia,) addressed  them  with  such  keenness  of  invective,  and 
declaimed  with  such  force  of  eloquence,  on  liberty  and 
patriotism,  that  when  he  concluded,  the  general  cry  was, 
f  let  us  march  on;  lead  us  against  the  enemy;'  and  they 
were  now  willing,  nay  anxious  to  encounter  all  those  dif- 
ficulties and  dangers,  which,  but  a  few  moments  before, 
had  almost  produced  a  mutiny." 

Thus  much  I  have  been  able  to  collect  of  the  parent- 

*  Mr.  Pope, 


4  SKETCHES    OP    THE 

age  and  family  of  Mr.  Henry;  and  this,  I  presume,  will 
be  thought  quite  sufficient,  in  relation  to  a  man,  who 
owed  no  part  of  his  greatness  to  the  lustre  of  his  pedi- 
gree, but  was,  in  truth,  the  sole  founder  of  his  own 
fortunes. 

Until  ten  years  of  age,  Patrick  Henry  was  sent  to 
a  school  in  the  neighbourhood,  where  he  learned  to 
read  and  write,  and  made  some  small  progress  in  arith- 
metic. He  was,  then,  taken  home,  and  under  the 
direction  of  his  father,  who  had  opened  a  grammar 
school  in  his  own  house,  he  acquired  a  superficial 
knowledge  of  the  Latin  language;  and  learned  to  read 
the  character,  but  never  to  translate  Greek.  At  the 
same  time,  he  made  a  considerable  proficiency  in  the 
mathematics,  the  only  branch  of  education  for  which, 
it  seems,  he  discovered,  in  his  youth,  the  slightest  pre- 
dilection. But  he  was  too  idle  to  gain  any  solid  advan- 
tage from  the  opportunities  which  were  thrown  in  his 
way.  He  was  passionately  addicted  to  the  sports  of  the 
field,  and  could  not  support  the  confinement  and  toil 
which  education  required.  Hence,  instead  of  system 
or  any  semblance  of  regularity  in  his  studies,  his  efforts 
were  always  desultory,  and  became  more  and  more 
rare  ;  until,  at  length,  when  the  hour  of  his  school  ex- 
ercises arrived,  Patrick  was  scarcely  ever  to  be  found. 
He  was  in  the  forest  with  his  gun,  or  over  the  brook 
with  his  angle-rod  ;  and,  in  these  frivolous  occupations, 
when  not  controuied  by  the  authority  of  his  father, 
(which  was  rarely  exerted,)  he  would,  it  is  said,  spend 
whole  days  and  weeks,  with  an  appetite  rather  whetted 
than  cloyed  by  enjoyment.  His  school  fellows,  having 
observed  his  growing  passion  for  those  amusements,  and 
having  remarked  that  its  progress  was  not  checked 
either  by  the  want  of  companions  or  the  want  of  sue- 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  5 

cess,  have  frequently  watched  his  movements  to  disco- 
ver, if  they  could,  the  secret  source  of  that  delight  which 
they  seemed  to  afford  him.  But  they  made  no  disco- 
very which  led  them  to  any  other  conclusion  than  (to 
use  their  own  expression)  "  that  he  loved  idleness  for 
its  own  sake."  They  have  frequently  observed  him 
laying  along,  under  the  shade  of  some  tree  that  over- 
hung the  sequestered  stream,  watching,  for  hours,  at 
the  same  spot,  the  motionless  cork  of  his  fishing  line., 
without  one  encouraging  symptom  of  success,  and  with- 
out any  apparent  source  of  enjoyment,  unless  he  could 
find  it  in  the  ease  of  his  posture,  or  in  the  illusions  of 
hope,  or,  which  is  most  probable,  in  the  stillness  of  the 
scene  and  the  silent  workings  of  his  own  imagination. 
This  love  of  solitude,  in  his  youth,  was  often  observed. 
Even  when  hunting  with  a  party,  his  choice  was  not  to 
join  the  noisy  band  that  drove  the  deer;  he  preferred  to 
take  his  stand,  alone,  where  he  might  wait  for  the  pass- 
ing game,  and  indulge  himself,  meanwhile,  in  the  luxury 
of  thinking.  Not  that  he  was  averse  to  society;  on  the 
contrary,  he  had,  at  times,  a  veiy  high  zest  for  it.  But 
even  in  society,  his  enjoyments  while  young,  were  of  a 
peculiar  cast;  he  did  not  mix  in  the  wild  mirth  of  his 
equals  in  age;  but  sat,  quiet  and  demure,  taking  no  part 
in  the  conversation,  giving  no  responsive  smile  to  the 
circulating  jest,  but  lost,  to  all  appearance,  in  silence 
and  abstraction.  This  abstraction,  however,  was  only 
apparent;  for  on  the  dispersion  of  a  company,  when  in- 
terrogated by  his  parents  as  to  what  had  been  passing, 
he  was  able  not  only  to  detail  the  conversation,  but  to 
sketch,  with  strict  fidelity,  the  character  of  every 
speaker.  None  of  these  early  delineations  of  charac- 
ter are  retained  by  his  cotemporaries;  and,  indeed, 
they  are  said  to  have  been  more  remarkable  for  their 
justness,  than  for  any  peculiar  felicity  of  execution. 


O  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

I  cannot  learn  that  he  gave,  in  his  youth,  any  evi- 
dence of  that  precocity  which  sometimes  distinguishes 
uncommon  genius.  His  companions  recollect  no  in- 
stance of  premature  wit,  no  striking  sentiment,  no  flash 
of  fancy,  no  remarkable  beauty  or  strength  of  ex- 
pression; and  no  indication,  however  slight,  either  of 
that  impassioned  love  of  liberty,  or  of  that  adventurous 
daring  and  intrepidity,  which  marked,  so  strongly,  his 
future  character.  So  far  was  he,  indeed,  from  exhi- 
biting any  one  prognostic  of  this  greatness,  that  every 
omen  foretold  a  life,  at  best  of  mediocrity,  if  not  of  in- 
significance. His  person  is  represented  as  having  been 
coarse,  his  manners  uncommonly  awkward,  his  dress 
slovenly,  his  conversation  very  plain,  his  aversion  to  study 
invincible,  and  his  faculties  almost  entirely  benumbed  by 
indolence.  No  persuasion  could  bring  him  either  to  read 
or  to  work.  On  the  contrary,  he  ran  wild  in  the  forest, 
like  one  of  the  aborigines  of  the  country,  and  divided 
his  life  between  the  dissipation  and  uproar  of  the  chase, 
and  the  languor  of  inaction. 

His  propensity  to  observe  and  comment  upon  the  hu- 
man character,  was,  so  far  as  I  can  learn,  the  only  cir- 
cumstance, which  distinguished  him,  advantageously, 
from  his  youthful  companions.  This  propensity  seems 
to  have  been  born  with  him,  and  to  have  exerted  itself, 
instinctively,  the  moment  that  a  new  subject  was  pre- 
sented to  his  view.  Its  action  was  incessant,  and  it  be- 
came, at  length,  almost  the  only  intellectual  exercise  in 
which  he  seemed  to  take  delight.  To  this  cause  may 
be  traced  that  consummate  knowledge  of  the  human 
heart  which  he  finally  attained,  and  which  enabled  him, 
when  he  came  upon  the  public  stage,  to  touch  the  springs 
of  passion  with  a  master-hand,  and  to  controul  the  reso- 
lutions and  decisions  of  his  hearers,  with  a  power,  al- 
most more  than  mortal. 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  7 

From  what  has  been  already  stated,  it  will  be  seen, 
how  little  education  had  to  do  with  the  formation  of  this 
great  man's  mind.  He  was,  indeed,  a-  mere  child  of 
nature,  and  nature  seems  to  have  been  too  proud 
and  too  jealous  of  her  work,  to  permit  it  to  be  touch- 
ed by  the  hand  of  art.  She  gave  him  Shakspeare's 
genius,  and  bade  him,  like  Shakspeare,  to  depend  on 
that  alone.  Let  not  the  youthful  reader,  however,  de- 
duce, from  the  example  of  Mr.  Henry,  an  argument  in 
favour  of  indolence  and  the  contempt  of  study.  Let 
him  remember  that  the  powers  which  surmounted  the 
disadvantage  of  those  early  habits,  were  such  as  very 
rarely  appear  upon  this  earth.  Let  him  remember, 
too,  how  long  the  genius,  even  of  Mr.  Hemy,  was  kept 
down  and  hidden  from  the  public  view,  by  the  sorcery 
of  those  pernicious  habits;  through  what  years  of 
poverty  and  wretchedness  they  doomed  him  to  struggle; 
and,  let  him  remember,  that  at  length,  when  in  the  ze- 
nith of  his  glory,  Mr.  Henry  himself,  had  frequent  occa- 
sions to  deplore  the  consequences  of  his  early  neglect  of 
literature,  and  to  bewail  "  the  ghosts  of  his  departed 
hours." 

His  father,  unable  to  sustain,  with  convenience,  the 
expense  of  so  large  a  family  as  was  now  multiplying  on 
his  hands,  found  it  necessary  to  qualify  his  sons,  at  a 
very  early  age,  to  support  themselves.  With  this  view, 
Patrick  was  placed,  at  the  age  of  fifteen,  behind  the 
counter  of  a  merchant  in  the  country.  How  he  con- 
ducted himself  in  this  situation,  I  have  not  been  able  to 
learn.  There  could  not,  however,  I  presume,  have 
been  any  flagrant  impropriety  in  his  conduct,  since,  in 
the  next  year,  his  father  considered  him  qualified  to 
carry  on  business,  on  his  own  account.  Under  this  im- 
pression, he  purchased  a  small  adventure  of  goods  for 


8  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

his  two  sons,  William  and  Patrick,  and,  according  to 
the  language  of  the  country,  "  set  them  up  in  trade/' 
William's  habits  of  idleness  were,  if  possible,  still  more 
unfortunate  than  Patrick's.  The  chief  management  of 
their  concerns  devolved,  therefore,  on  the  younger  bro- 
ther, and  that  management  seems  to  have  been  most 
wretched. 

Left  to  himself,  all  the  indolence  of  his  character  re- 
turned. Those  unfortunate  habits  which  he  had  form- 
ed, and  whose  spell  was  already,  too  strong  to  be  bro- 
ken, comported  very  poorly  with  that  close  attention, 
that  accuracy  and  persevering  vigour,  which  are  essen- 
tial to  the  merchant.  The  drudgery  of  retailing  and  of 
book-keeping  soon  became  intolerable;  yet  he  was 
obliged  to  preserve  appearances  by  remaining,  conti- 
nually, at  his  stand.  Besides  these  unpropitious  habits, 
there  was  still  another  obstacle  to  his  success,  in  the  na- 
tural kindness  of  his  temper.  "  He  could  not  find  it  in 
his  heart "  to  disappoint  any  one  who  came  to  him  for 
credit;  and  he  was  very  easily  satisfied  by  apologies  for 
non-payment.  He  condemned,  in  himself,  this  facility 
of  temper,  and  foresaw  the  embarrassments  with  which 
it  threatened  him ;  but  he  was  unable  to  overcome  it. 
Even  with  the  best  prospects,  the  confinement  of  such 
a  business  would  have  been  scarcely  supportable;  but 
with  those  which  now  threatened  him,  his  store  be- 
came a  prison.  To  make  the  matter  still  worse,  the 
joys  of  the  chase,  joys  now  to  him  forbidden,  echoed 
around  him  every  morning,  and  by  their  contrast,  and 
the  longings  which  they  excited,  contributed  to  deepen 
the  disgust  which  he  had  taken  to  his  employments. 

From  these  painful  reflections,  and  the  gloomy  fore- 
bodings which  darkened  the  future,  he  sought,  at  first, 
a  refuge  in  music,  for  which  it  seems  he  had  a  natural 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  9 

taste,  and  he  learned  to  play  well  on  the  violin  and  on 
the  flute.  From  music  he  passed  to  books,  and,  having 
procured  a  few  light  and  elegant  authors,  acquired,  for 
the  first  time,  a  relish  for  reading. 

He  found  another  relief,  too,  in  the  frequent  oppor- 
tunities now  afforded  him  of  pursuing  his  favourite  study 
of  the  human  character.  The  character  of  every  cus- 
tomer underwent  this  scrutiny;  and  that,  not  with  refer- 
ence either  to  the  integrity  or  solvency  of  the  individual, 
in  which  one  would  suppose  that  Mr.  Henry  would  feel 
himself  most  interested;  but  in  relation  to  the  structure  of 
his  mind,  the  general  cast  of  his  opinions,  the  motives 
and  principles  which  influenced  his  actions,  and  what 
may  be  called  the  philosophy  of  character.  In  pursuing 
these  investigations,  he  is  said  to  have  resorted  to  arts, 
apparently  so  far  above  his  years,  and  which  look  so 
much  like  an  after-thought,  resulting  from  his  future 
eminence,  that  I  should  hesitate  to  make  the  statement, 
were  it  not  attested  by  so  many  witnesses,  and  by  some 
who  cannot  be  suspected  of  the  capacity  for  having  fabri- 
cated the  fact.  Their  account  of  it,  then,  is  this;  that 
whenever  a  company  of  his  customers  met  in  the  store, 
(which  frequently  happened  on  the  last  day  of  the  week) 
and  were,  themselves,  sufficiently  gay  and  animated  to 
talk  and  act  as  nature  prompted,  without  concealment, 
without  reserve,  he  would  take  no  part  in  their  discus- 
sions, but  listen  with  a  silence  as  deep  and  attentive,  as 
if  under  the  influence  of  some  potent  charm.  If,  on  the 
contraiy,  they  were  dull  and  silent,  he  would,  without 
betraying  his  drift,  task  himself  to  set  them  in  motion, 
and  excite  them  to  remark,  collision,  and  exclamation. 
He  was  peculiarly  delighted  with  comparing  their  cha- 
racters, and  ascertaining  how  they  would,  severally,  act, 
in  given  situations.     With  this  view  he  would  state  an- 


10  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

hypothetic  case,  and  call  for  their  opinions,  one  by  one, 
as  to  the  conduct  which  would  be  proper  in  it.  If  they 
differed,  he  would  demand  their  reasons,  and  enjoy 
highly,  the  debates  in  which  he  would  thus  involve 
them.  By  multiplying  and  varying  those  imaginary 
cases  at  pleasure,  he  ascertained  the  general  course  of 
human  opinion,  and  formed,  for  himself,  as  it  were,  a 
graduated  scale  of  the  motives  and  conduct  which  are 
natural  to  man.  Sometimes  he  would  entertain  them 
with  stories,  gathered  from  his  reading,  or,  as  was  more 
frequently  the  case,  drawn  from  his  own  fancy,  com- 
posed of  heterogeneous  circumstances,  calculated  to  ex- 
cite, by  turns,  pity,  terror,  resentment,  indignation,  con- 
tempt; pausing,  in  the  turns  of  his  narrative,  to  observe 
the  effect;  to  watch  the  different  modes  in  which  the 
passions  expressed  themselves,  and  learn  the  language 
of  emotion  from  those  children  of  nature. 

In  these  exercises,  Mr,  Henry  could  have  had  no- 
thing in  view  beyond  the  present  gratification  of  a  na- 
tural propensity.  The  advantages  of  them,  however, 
were  far  more  permanent,  and  gave  the  brightest  colours 
to  his  future  life.  For  those  continual  efforts  to  render 
bimself  intelligible  to  his  plain  and  unlettered  hearers, 
on  subjects  entirely  new  to  them,  taught  him  that  clear 
and  simple  style  which  forms  the  best  vehicle  of  thought 
to  a  popular  assembly;  which  his  attempts  to  interest  and 
affect  them,  in  order  that  he  might  hear  from  them  the 
echo  of  nature's  voice,  instructed  him  in  those  topics  of 
persuasion  by  which  men  were  the  most  certainly  to  be 
moved,  and  in  the  kind  of  imageiy  and  structure  of  lan- 
guage, which  were  the  best  fitted  to  strike  and  agitate 
their  hearts.  These  constituted  his  excellences  as  an 
orator;  and  never  was  there  a  man,  in  any  age,  who 
possessed,  in  a  more  eminent  degree,  the  lucid  and  ner- 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  1 1 

vous  style  of  argument,  the  command  of  the  most  beau- 
tiful and  striking  imagery,  or  that  language  of  passion 
which  burns  from  soul  to  soul. 

In  the  mean  time,  the  business  of  the  store  was  rush- 
ing headlong,  to  its  catastrophe.  One  year  put  an  end 
to  it.  William  was  then  thrown  loose  upon  society,  to 
which  he  was  never,  afterwards,  usefully  attached;*  and 
Patrick  was  engaged,  for  the  two  or  three  following 
years,  in  winding  up  this  disastrous  experiment  as  well 
as  he  could. 

His  misfortunes,  however,  seem  not  to  have  had  the 
effect  either  of  teaching  him  prudence  or  of  chilling  his 
affections.  For,  at  the  early  age  of  eighteen,  we  find 
him  married  to  a  miss  Shelton,  the  daughter  of  an  honest 
farmer  in  the  neighbourhood,  but  in  circumstances  too 
poor  to  contribute  effectually  to  her  support.  By  the 
joint  assistance  of  their  parents,  however,  the  young  cou- 
ple were  settled  on  a  small  farm,  and,  here,  with  the  as- 
sistance of  one  or  two  slaves,  Mr.  Henry  had  to  delve 
the  earth,  with  his  own  hands,  for  subsistence.  Such 
are  the  vicissitudes  of  human  life!  It  is  curious  to  con- 
template this  giant  genius,  destined  in  a  few  years  to 
guide  the  councils  of  a  mighty  nation,  but  unconscious 
of  the  intellectual  treasures  which  he  possessed,  encum- 
bered, at  the  early  age  of  eighteen,  with  the  cares  of  a 
family;  obscure,  unknown  and  almost  unpitied;  digging, 
with  wearied  limbs  and  with  an  aching  heart,  a  small 

*  I  have  seen  an  original  letter  from  col.  John  Henry  to  his  son  William,  in 
which  he  remonstrates  with  him  on  his  wild  and  dissipated  course  of  life. 
There  is  reason  to  believe,  however,  that  at  a  later  period,  he  may  have  re- 
formed, since  a  gentleman,  to  whom  the  manuscript  of  this  work  was  submit- 
ted, notes  on  this  passage,  that  when  he  was  at  college  at  Williamsburg,  he 
recollects  to  have  seen  William  Henry  a  member  of  the  assembly,  from  the 
county  of  Fluvanna;  that  he  was  called  colonel,  and  was,  he  afterwards  under- 
stood, pretty  well  provided  as  to  fortune. 


12  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

spot  of  barren  earth,  for  bread,  and  blessing  the  hour  of 
night  which  relieved  him  from  toil.  Little  could  the 
wealthy  and  great  of  the  land,  as  they  rolled  along  the 
highway  in  splendour,  and  beheld  the  young  rustic  at 
work  in  the  coarse  garb  of  a  labourer,  covered  with 
dust  and  melting  in  the  sun,  have  suspected  that  this 
was  the  man  who  was  destined  not  only  to  humble  their 
pride,  but  to  make  the  prince  himself  tremble  on  his  dis- 
tant throne,  and  to  shake  the  brightest  jewels  from  the 
British  crown.  Little,  indeed,  could  he  himself  have 
suspected  it;  for  amidst  the  distresses  which  thickened 
around  him  at  this  time,  and  threatened  him  not  only 
with  obscurity  but  with  famine,  no  hopes  came  to  cheer 
the  gloom,  nor  did  there  remain  to  him  any  earthly  con- 
solation, save  that  which  he  found  in  the  bosom  of  his 
own  family.  Fortunately  for  him,  there  never  was  a 
heart  which  felt  this  consolation  with  greater  force.  No 
man  ever  possessed  the  domestic  virtues  in  a  higher  de- 
gree, or  enjoyed,  more  exquisitely,  those  pure  delights 
which  flow  from  the  endearing  relations  of  conjugal 
life. 

Mr.  Henry's  want  of  agricultural  skill,  and  his  uncon- 
querable aversion  to  every  species  of  systematic  labour, 
drove  him,  necessarily,  after  a  trial  of  two  years,  to  aban- 
don this  pursuit  altogether.  His  next  step  seems  to  have 
been  dictated  by  absolute  despair;  for,  selling  off  his  lit- 
tle possessions,  at  a  sacrifice  for  cash,  he  entered,  a  se- 
cond time,  on  the  inauspicious  business  of  merchandize. 
Perhaps,  he  flattered  himself  that  he  would  be  able  to 
profit  by  his  past  experience,  and  conduct  this  experi- 
ment to  a  more  successful  issue.  But  if  he  did  so,  he 
deceived  himself.  He  soon  found  that  he  had  not  chang- 
ed his  character,  by  changing  his  pursuits.  His  early 
habits  still  continued  to  haunt  him.     The  same  want  of 


LIFE    OF    HENRY.  IS 

method,  the  same  facility  of  temper,  soon  became  appa- 
rent by  their  ruinous  effects.  He  resumed  his  violin,  his 
flute,  his  books,  his  curious  inspection  of  human  nature; 
and  not  unfrequently  ventured  to  shut  up  his  store,  and 
indulge  himself  in  the  favourite  sports  of  his  youth. 

His  reading,  however,  began  to  assume  a  more  serious 
character.  He  studied  geography,  in  which  it  is  said 
that  he  became  an  adept.  He  read,  also,  the  charters 
and  history  of  the  colony.  He  became  fond  of  histo- 
rical works  generally,  particularly  those  of  Greece  and 
Rome;  and,  from  the  tenacity  of  his  memory  and  the 
strength  of  his  judgment,  soon  made  himself  a  perfect 
master  of  their  contents.  Livy  was  his  favourite;  and 
having  procured  a  translation,  he  became  so  much 
enamoured  of  the  work,  that  he  made  it  a  standing  rule 
to  read  it  through,  once  at  least,  in  every  year,  during 
the  earlier  part  of  his  life.*  The  grandeur  of  the 
Roman  character,  so  beautifully  exhibited  by  Livy, 
filled  him  with  surprise  and  admiration;  and  he  was 
particularly  enraptured  with  those  vivid  descriptions 
and  eloquent  harangues  with  which  the  work  abounds. 
Fortune  could  scarcely  have  thrown  in  his  way,  a  book 
better  fitted  to  foster  his  republican  spirit,  and  awaken 
the  still  dormant  powers  of  his  genius;  and  it  seems  not 
improbable,  that  the  lofty  strain  in  which  he  himself 
afterwards  both  spoke  and  acted,  was,  if  not  originally 
inspired,  at  least  highly  raised,  by  the  noble  models  set 
before  him  by  this  favourite  author. 

This  second  mercantile  experiment  was  still  more 
unfortunate  than  the  first.  In  a  few  years  it  left  him  a 
bankrupt,  and  placed  him  in  a  situation  than  which  it  is 
difficult  to  conceive  one  more  wretched.  Every  atom 
of  his  property  was  now  gone,  his  friends  were  unable 

*  Judge  Nelson  had  this  statement  from  Mr,  Henry  himself. 


14  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

to  assist  him  any  further;  he  had  tried  every  means  of 
support,  of  which  he  could  suppose  himself  capable,  and 
every  one  had  failed;  ruin  was  behind  him;  poverty,  debt, 
want,  and  famine  before;  and,  as  if  his  cup  of  misery 
were  not  already  full  enough,  here  were  a  suffering 
wife  and  children  to  make  it  overflow. 

But  with  all  his  acuteness  of  feeling,  Mr.  Henry  pos- 
sessed great  native  firmness  of  character;  and,  let  me 
add,  great  reliance,  too,  on  that  unseen  arm  which 
never  long  deserts  the  faithful.  Thus  supported,  he 
was  able  to  bear  up  under  the  heaviest  pressure  of  mis- 
fortune, and  even  to  be  cheerful,  under  circumstances 
which  would  sink  most  other  men  into  despair. 

It  was  at  this  period  of  his  fortunes,  that  Mr.  Jefferson 
became  acquainted  with  him;  and  the  reader,  I  am 
persuaded,  will  be  gratified  with  that  gentleman^s  own 
account  of  it.  These  are  his  words.  "  My  acquaint- 
ance with  Mr.  Henry  commenced  in  the  winter  of 
1759-60.  On  my  way  to  the  college,  I  passed  the 
Christmas  holidays,  at  col.  Dandridge's,  in  Hanover, 
to  whom  Mr.  Henry  was  a  near  neighbour.  During 
the  festivity  of  the  season,  I  met  him  in  society  every 
day,  and  we  became  well  acquainted,  although  I  was 
much  his  junior,  being  then  in  my  seventeenth  year, 
and  he  a  married  man.  His  manners  had  something 
of  coarseness  in  them;  his  passion  was  music,  dancing 
and  pleasantry.  He  excelled  in  the  last,  and  it  attach- 
ed every  one  to  him.  You  ask  some  account  of  his 
mind  and  information  at  this  period;  but  you  will  re- 
collect that  we  were  almost  continually  engaged  in  the 
usual  revelries  of  the  season.  The  occasion  perhaps, 
as  much  as  his  idle  disposition,  prevented  his  engaging 
in  any  conversation  which  might  give  the  measure 
either  of  his  mind  or  information.     Opportunity  was 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  15 

not,  indeed,  wholly  wanting;  because  Mr.  John  Camp- 
bell was  there,  who  had  married  Mrs.  Spotswood,  the 
sister  of  col.  Dandridge.  He  was  a  man  of  science, 
and  often  introduced  conversation  on  scientific  subjects. 
Mr.  Henry  had,  a  little  before,  broken  up  his  store,  or 
rather  it  had  broken  him  up;  but  his  misfortunes  were 
not  to  be  traced,  either  in  his  countenance  or  conduct." 

This  cheerfulness  of  spirit,  under  a  reverse  of  for- 
tune so  severe,  is  certainly  a  very  striking  proof  of  the 
manliness  of  his  character.  It  is  not,  indeed,  easy  to 
conceive  that  a  mind  like  Mr.  Henry's  could  finally  sink 
under  any  pressure  of  adversity.  Such  a  mind,  al- 
though it  may  not  immediately  perceive  whither  to  di- 
rect its  efforts,  must  always  possess  a  consciousness  of 
power  sufficient  to  buoy  it  above  despondency.  But,  be 
this  as  it  may,  of  Mr.  Henry  it  was  certainly  true,  as 
Doctor  Johnson  has  observed  of  Swift,  that  "  he  was 
not  one  of  those  who,  having  lost  one  part  of  life  in  idle- 
ness, are  tempted  to  throw  away  the  remainder  in  de- 
spair." 

It  seems  to  be  matter  of  surprise,  that  even  yet, 
amidst  all  these  various  struggles  for  subsistence,  the 
powers  of  his  mind  had  not  so  developed  themselves  as 
to  suggest  to  any  friend  the  pursuit  for  which  he  was 
formed.  He  seems  to  have  been  a  plant  of  slow  growth, 
but,  like  other  plants  of  that  nature,  formed  for  dura- 
tion, and  fitted  to  endure  the  buffetings  of  the  rudest 
storm. 

It  was  now,  when  all  other  experiments  had  failed, 
that,  as  a  last  effort,  he  determined,  of  his  own  accord, 
to  make  a  trial  of  the  law.  No  one  expected  him  to 
succeed  in  any  eminent  degree.  His  unfortunate  habits 
were,  by  no  means,  suited  to  so  laborious  a  profession: 
and  even  if  it  were  not  too  late  in  life  for  him  to  hope 


16  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

to  master  its  learning,  the  situation  of  his  affairs  forbade 
an  extensive  course  of  reading.  In  addition  to  these 
obstacles,  the  business  of  the  profession,  in  that  quar- 
ter, was  already  in  hands  from  which  it  was  not  easily 
to  be  taken;  for  (to  mention  no  others)  judge  Lyons,  the 
late  president  of  the  court  of  appeals,  was  then  at  the 
bar  of  Hanover  and  the  adjacent  counties,  with  an  un- 
rivalled reputation  for  legal  learning;  and  Mr.  John 
Lewis,  a  man,  also,  of  very  respectable  legal  attain- 
ments, occupied  the  whole  field  of  forensic  eloquence. 
Mr.  Henry,  himself,  seems  to  have  hoped  for  nothing 
more  from  the  profession  than  a  scanty  subsistence  for 
himself  and  his  family,  and  his  preparation  was  suited 
to  these  humble  expectations;  for  to  the  study  of  a  pro- 
fession, which  is  said  to  require  the  lucubrations  of 
twenty  years,  Mr.  Henry  devoted  not  more  than  six 
weeks*  On  this  preparation,  however,  he  obtained  a 
license  to  practise  the  law.  How  he  passed  with  two 
of  the  examiners,  I  have  no  intelligence;  but  he  himself 
Used  to  relate  his  interview  with  the  third.  This  was 
no  other  than  Mr.  John  Randolph,  who  was  afterwards 
the  king's  attorney  general  for  the  colony;  a  gentleman 
of  the  most  courtly  elegance  of  person  and  manners,  a 
polished  wit,  and  a  profound  lawyer.  At  first,  he  was 
so  much  shocked  by  Mr.  Henry's  very  ungainly  figure 
and  address,  that  he  refused  to  examine  him:  under- 
standing, however,  that  he  had  already  obtained  two  sig- 
natures, he  entered,  with  manifest  reluctance,  on  the 
business.  A  very  short  time  was  sufficient  to  satisfy 
him  of  the  erroneous  conclusion  which  he  had  drawn 
from  the  exterior  of  the  candidate.  With  evident  marks 

*  So  say  Mr.  Jefferson  and  judge  Winston.  Mr.  Pope  says  nine  months. 
Col.  Meredith  and  Capt.  Dabney,  six  or  eight  months.  Judge  Tyler,  one 
month ;  and  he  adds,  "  This  I  had  from  his  own  lips.  In  this  time,  he  read 
Coke  upon  Littleton,  and  the  Virginia  laws." 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  17 

of  increasing  surprise  (produced  no  doubt  by  the  pecu- 
liar texture  and  strength  of  Mr.  Henry's  style,  and  the 
boldness  and  originality  of  his  combinations)  he  conti- 
nued the  examination  for  several  hours:  interrogating 
the  candidate,  not  on  the  principles  of  municipal  law, 
in  which  he  no  doubt  soon  discovered  his  deficiency, 
but  on  the  laws  of  nature  and  of  nations,  on  the  policy 
of  the  feudal  system,  and  on  general  history,  which  last 
he  found  to  be  his  strong  hold.  During  the  very  short 
portion  of  the  examination  which  was  devoted  to  the 
common  law,  Mr.  Randolph  dissented,  or  affected  to  dis- 
sent, from  one  of  Mr.  Henry's  answers,  and  called  upon 
him  to  assign  the  reasons  of  his  opinion.  This  pro- 
duced an  argument;  and  Mr.  Randolph  now  played  off 
on  him,  the  same  arts  which  he  himself,  had  so  often 
practised  on  his  country  customers;  drawing  him  out 
by  questions,  endeavouring  to  puzzle  him  by  subtleties, 
assailing  him  with  declamation,  and  watching  continual- 
ly, the  defensive  operations  of  his  mind.  After  a  consi- 
derable discussion,  he  said,  "  you  defend  your  opinions 
well,  sir;  but  now  to  the  law  and  to  the  testimony." 
Hereupon  he  carried  him  to  his  office,  and  opening  the 
authorities,  said  to  him,  "  behold  the  force  of  natural 
reason;  you  have  never  seen  these  books,  nor  this  prin- 
ciple of  the  law;  yet  you  are  right  and  I  am  wrong;  and 
from  the  lesson  which  you  have  given  me  (you  must 
excuse  me  for  saying  it)  I  will  never  trust  to  appear- 
ances again.  Mr.  Henry,  if  your  industry  be  only  half 
equal  to  your  genius,  I  augur  that  you  will  do  well,  and 
become  an  ornament  and  an  honour  to  your  profes- 
sion." It  was  always  Mr.  Henry's  belief  that  Mr.  Ran- 
dolph had  affected  this  difference  of  opinion,  merely  to 
afford  him  the  pleasure  of  a  triumph,  and  to  make  some 
atonement  for  the  wound  which  his  first  repulse  had  in- 

c 


18  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

flicted.  Be  this  as  it  may,  the  interview  was  followed 
by  the  most  marked  and  permanent  respect  on  the  part 
of  Mr.  Randolph,  and  the  most  sincere  good  will  and 
gratitude,  on  that  of  Mr.  Henry.* 

It  was  at  the  age  of  four  and  twenty  that  Mr.  Henry 
obtained  his  license.  Of  the  science  of  law,  he  knew 
almost  nothing:  of  the  practical  part  he  was  so  wholly 
ignorant,  that  he  was  not  only  unable  to  draw  a  declara- 
tion or  a  plea,  but  incapable  it  is  said,  of  the  most  com- 
mon and  simple  business  of  his  profession,  even  of  the 
mode  of  ordering  a  suit,  giving  a  notice,  or  making  a 
motion  in  court.  It  is  not  at  all  wonderful  therefore, 
that  such  a  novice,  opposed  as  he  was  by  veterans, 
covered  with  the  whole  armour  of  the  law,  should 
linger  in  the  back  ground,  for  three  years.f 

During  this  time,  the  wants  and  distresses  of  his  fami- 
ly were  extreme.  The  profits  of  his  practice  could  not 
have  supplied  them  even  with  the  necessaries  of  life: 
and  he  seems  to  have  spent  the  greatest  part  of  his  time, 


*  This  account  of  Mr.  Henry's  examination  is  given  by  judge  Tyler,  who 
states  it  as  coming  from  Mr.  Henry  himself.  It  was  written  before  I  had 
received  the  following  statement  from  Mr.  Jefferson  ;  and  although  there  is 
some  difference  in  the  circumstances,  it  has  not  been  thought  important 
enough  to  make  an  alteration  of  the  text  necessary.  This  is  Mr.  Jefferson's 
statement.  "  In  the  spring  of  1760,  he  came  to  Williamsburg  to  obtain  a 
license  as  a  lawyer,  and  he  called  on  me  at  college.  He-told  me  he  had 
been  reading  law  only  six  weeks.  Two  of  the  examiners,  however,  Peyton 
and  John  Randolph,  men  of  great  facility  of  temper,  signed  his  license  with 
as  much  reluctance  as  their  dispositions  would  permit  them  to  show.  Mr. 
Wythe  absolutely  refused.  Robert  C  Nicholas  refused  also  at  first ;  but  on 
repeated  importunities  and  promises  of  future  reading,  he  signed.  These 
facts  I  had  afterwards  from  the  gentlemen  themselves  ;  the  two  Randolphs 
acknowledging  he  was  very  ignorant  of  the  law,  but  that  they  perceived 
him  to  be  a  young  man  of  genius,  and  did  not  doubt  that  he  would  soon 
qualify  himself." 

f  "  He  was  not  distinguished  at  the  bar  for  near  four  years."  Judge- 
Winston  :  yet  Mr.  Burk  intimates  that  he  took  the  lead  in  his  profession,  at 
once.    3d  vol.  301. 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  19 

both  of  his  study  of  the  law  and  the  practice  of  the  first 
two  or  three  years,  with  his  father-in-law,  Mr.  Shelton, 
who  then  kept  the  tavern  at  Hanover  court  house. 
Whenever  Mr.  Shelton  was  from  home,  Mr.  Henry  sup- 
plied his  place  in  the  tavern,  received  the  guests,  and  at-^ 
tended  to  their  entertainment.  All  this  was  very  natural 
in  Mr.  Henry's  situation,  and  seems  to  have  been  purely 
the  voluntary  movement  of  his  naturally  kind  and  obliging 
disposition.  Hence,  however,  a  story  has  arisen,  that  in 
the  early  part  of  his  life,  he  was  a  bar-keeper  by  pro- 
fession. The  fact  seems  not  to  have  been  so:  but  if  it 
had  been,  it  would  certainly  have  redounded  much  more 
to  his  honour  than  to  his  discredit;  for  as  Mr.  Henry 
owed  no  part  of  his  distinction  either  to  birth  or  fortune, 
but  wholly  to  himself,  the  deeper  the  obscurity  and  pov- 
erty from  which  he  emerged,  the  stronger  is  the  evidence 
which  it  bears  to  his  powers,  and  the  greater  glory  does 
it  shed  around  him. 

About  the  time  of  Mr.  Henry's  coming  to  the  bar,  a 
controversy  arose  in  Virginia,  which  gradually  produced 
a  very  strong  excitement,  and  called  to  it,  at  length,  the 
attention  of  the  whole  state. 

This  was  the  famous  controversy  between  the  clergy 
on  the  one  hand,  and  the  legislature  and  people  of  the 
colony  on  the  other,  touching  the  stipend  claimed  by  the 
former;  and  as  this  was  the  occasion  on  which  Mr. 
Henry's  genius  first  broke  forth,  those  who  take  an 
interest  in  his  life,  will  not  be  displeased  by  a  particular 
account  of  the  nature  and  grounds  of  the  dispute.  It 
will  be  borne  in  mind,  that  the  church  of  England  was 
at  this  period,  the  established  church  of  Virginia;  and, 
by  an  act  of  assembly  passed  so  far  back  as  the  year 
1696,  each  minister  of  a  parish  had  been  provided  with 
an  annual  stipend  of  sixteen  thousand  pounds  of  tobacco. 


20  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

This  act  was  re-enacted  with  amendments,  in  1748, 
and  in  this  form,  had  received  the  royal  assent.  The 
price  of  tobacco  had  long  remained  stationary  at  two 
pence  in  the  pound,  or  sixteen  shillings  and  eight  pence 
per  hundred.  According  to  the  provision  of  the  law, 
the  clergy  had  the  right  to  demand,  and  were  in  the 
practice  of  receiving  payment  of  their  stipend,  in  the 
specific  tobacco;  unless  they  chose,  for  convenience, 
to  commute  it  for  money  at  the  market  price.  In  the 
year  1 755,  however,  the  crop  of  tobacco,  having  fallen 
short,  the  legislature  passed  "  an  act  to  enable  the 
inhabitants  of  this  colony,  to  discharge  their  tobacco 
debts  in  money  for  the  present  year:"  by  the  provisions 
of  which  "  all  persons  from  whom  any  tobacco  was  due, 
were  authorized  to  pay  the  same  either  in  tobacco,  or  in 
money,  after  the  rate  of  sixteen  shillings  and  eight  pence 
per  hundred,  at  the  option  of  the  debtor."  This  act  was 
to  continue  in  force  for  ten  months  and  no  longer,  and 
did  not  contain  the  usual  clause  of  suspension,  until  it 
should  receive  the  royal  assent.  Whether  the  scarcity  of 
tobacco  was  so  general  and  so  notorious,  as  to  render 
this  act  a  measure  of  obvious  humanity  and  necessity,  or 
whether  the  clergy  were  satisfied  by  its  generality,  since 
it  embraced  sheriffs,  clerks,  attornies,  and  all  other 
tobacco  creditors,  as  well  as  themselves,  or  whether 
they  acquiesced  in  it  as  a  temporary  expedient,  which 
they  supposed  not  likely  to  be  repeated,  it  is  certain  that 
no  objection  was  made  to  the  law  at  that  time.  They 
could  not  indeed,  have  helped  observing  the  benefits 
which  the  rich  planters  derived  from  the  act;  for  they 
were  receiving  from  fifty  to  sixty  shillings  per  hundred 
for  their  tobacco,  while  they  paid  off  their  debts,  due  in 
that  article,  at  the  old  price  of  sixteen  shillings  and  eight 
pence.     Nothing,  however,  was  then  said  in  defence 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  21 

either  of  the  royal  prerogative,  or  of  the  rights  of  the 
clergy,  but  the  law  was  permitted  to  go  peaceably 
through  its  ten  months  operation.  The  great  tobacco 
planters  had  not  forgotten  the  fruits  of  this  act,  when, 
in  the  year  1758,  upon  a  surmise  that  another  short 
crop  was  likely  to  occur,  the  provisions  of  the  act  of 
1 755  were  re-enacted,  and  the  new  law,  like  the  former, 
contained  no  suspending  clause.  The  crop,  as  had 
been  anticipated,  did  fall  short,  and  the  price  of  tobacco 
rose  immediately  from  sixteen  and  eight  pence  to  fifty 
shillings  per  hundred.  The  clergy  now  took  the  alarm, 
and  the  act  was  assailed  by  an  indignant,  sarcastic,  and 
vigorous  pamphlet,  entitled  "  The  Two-Penny  Act/5 
from  the  pen  of  the  Rev.  John  Camm,  the  rector  of 
York-Hampton  parish,  and  the  Episcopalian  commis- 
sary for  the  colony  *  He  was  answered  by  two  pam- 
phlets, written,  the  one  by  col.  Richard  Rland,  and  the 
other  by  col.  Landon  Carter,  in  both  which  the  com- 
missary was  very  roughly  handled.  He  replied,  in  a 
still  severer  pamphlet,  under  the  ludicrous  title  of  u  The 
Colonels  Dismounted."  The  colonels  rejoined;  and  this 
war  of  pamphlets,  in  which,  with  some  sound  argument, 
there  was  a  great  deal  of  what  Dryden  has  called  "  the 
horse  play  of  raillery,"  was  kept  up,  until  the  whole 
colony,  which  had  at  first  looked  on  for  amusement, 
kindled  seriously  in  the  contest  from  motives  of 
interest.  Such  was  the  excitement  produced  by  the 
discussion,  and  at  length  so  strong  the  current  against 
the  clergy,  that  the  printers  found  it  expedient  to  shut 
their  presses  against  them  in  this  colony,  and  Mr.  Camm 

*  The  governor  of  Virginia  represented  the  king ;  the  council,  the  house 
of  lords ;  and  the  Episcopalian  commissary  (a  member  of  the  council)  repre- 
sented the  spiritual  part  of  that  house;  the  house  of  burgesses,  was,  of  course, 
the  house  of  commons. 


22  SKETCHES    OP    THE 

had  at  last  to  resort  to  Maryland  for  publication.  These 
pamphlets  are  still  extant;  and  it  seems  impossible  to 
deny,  at  this  day,  that  the  clergy  had  much  the  best  of 
the  argument.  The  king  in  his  council,  took  up  the 
subject,  denounced  the  act  of  1758  as  an  usurpation, 
and  declared  it  utterly  null  and  void.  Thus  supported, 
the  clergy  resolved  to  bring  the  question  to  a  judicial 
test;  and  suits  were  accordingly  brought  by  them,  in  the 
various  county  courts  of  the  colony,  to  recover  their 
stipends  in  the  specific  tobacco.  They  selected  the 
county  of  Hanover  as  the  place  of  the  first  experiment; 
and  this  was  made  in  a  suit  instituted  by  the  Rev,  James 
Maury,*  against  the  collector  of  that  county  and  his 
sureties.  The  record  of  this  suit  is  now  before  me. 
The  declaration  is  founded  on  the  act  of  1 748  which 
gives  the  tobacco;  the  defendants  pleaded  specially  the 
act  of  1758,  which  authorizes  the  commutation  into 
money,  at  sixteen  and  eight  pence:  to  this  plea  the 
plaintiff  demurred;  assigning  for  causes  of  demurrer, 
first,  that  the  act  of  1758,  not  having  received  the  royal 
assent,  had  not  the  force  of  a  law;  and,  secondly,  that 
the  king,  in  council,  had  declared  that  act  null  and 
void.  The  case  stood  for  argument  on  the  demurrer 
to  the  November  term,  1763,  and  was  argued  by  Mr. 
Lyons  for  the  plaintiff,  and  Mr.  John  Lewis  for  the 
defendants;  when  the  court,  very  much  to  the  credit  of 
their  candour  and  firmness,  breasted  the  popular  current 
by  sustaining  the  demurrer.  Thus  far  the  clergy  sailed 
before  the  wind,  and  concluded,  with  good  reason,  that 


*  Mr.  Burk  (vol.  3d.  page  303)  makes  the  Rev.  Patrick  Henry  the  plaintiff 
in  tills  cause ;  in  this  he  is  corrected  by  the  records  of  the  county.  Mr.  Burk, 
also,  sets  down  "  The  Two-Penny  Act"  to  the  speculations  of  a  man  by  the 
name  of  Dickinson;  in  this  he  is  confuted  by  the  act  itself;  the  preamble 
expressly  founding-  it,  on  the  shortness  of  the  crop. 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  S3 

their  triumph  was  complete:  for  the  act  of  1758  having 
been  declared  void  by  the  judgment  on  the  demurrer, 
that  of  1 748  was  left  in  full  force,  and  became,  in  law, 
the  only  standard  for  the  finding  of  the  jury.  Mr.  Lewis 
was  so  thoroughly  convinced  of  this,  that  he  retired 
from  the  cause;  informing  his  clients  that  it  had  been, 
in  effect,  decided  against  them,  and  that  there  remained 
nothing  more  for  him  to  do.  In  this  desperate  situation, 
they  applied  to  Patrick  Henry,  and  he  undertook  to 
argue  it  for  them  before  the  jury,  at  the  ensuing  term. 
Accordingly,  on  the  first  day  of  the  following  December, 
he  attended  the  court,  and,  on  his  arrival,  found  on  the 
court-yard,  such  a  concourse,  as  would  have  appalled 
any  other  man  in  his  situation.  They  were  not  the 
people  of  the  county  merely,  who  were  there,  but 
visitors  from  all  the  counties,  to  a  considerable  distance 
around.  The  decision  upon  the  demurrer,  had  produced 
a  violent  ferment  amongst  the  people,  and  equal  exulta- 
tion on  the  part  of  the  clergy;  who  attended  the  court  in 
a  large  body,  either  to  look  down  opposition,  or  to  enjoy 
the  final  triumph  of  this  hard  fought  contest,  which  they 
now  considered  as  perfectly  secure.  Among  many 
other  clergymen,  who  attended  on  this  occasion,  came 
the  Reverend  Patrick  Henry,  who  was  the  plaintiff  in 
another  cause  of  the  same  nature,  then  depending  in 
court.  When  Mr.  Henry  saw  his  uncle  approach,  he 
walked  up  to  his  carriage,  accompanied  by  col.  Mere- 
dith, and  expressed  his  regret  at  seeing  him  there. 
«  Why  so?"  enquired  the  uncle.  "  Because,  sir,"  said 
Mr.  Henry,  "  you  know  that  I  have  never  yet  spoken 
in  public,  and  I  fear  that  I  shall  be  too  much  overawed 
by  your  presence,  to  be  able  to  do  my  duty  to  my  clients; 
besides  sir,  I  shall  be  obliged  to  say  some  hard  things 
of  the  clergy,  and  I  am  very  unwilling  to  give  pain  to 


24,  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

your  feelings."  His  uncle  reproved  him  for  having 
engaged  in  the  cause;  which  Mr.  Henry  excused  by 
saying,  that  the  clergy  had  not  thought  him  worthy  of 
being  retained  on  their  side,  and  he  knew  of  no  moral 
principle  by  which  he  was  bound  to  refuse  a  fee 
from  their  adversaries;  besides,  he  confessed,  that  in 
this  controversy,  both  his  heart  and  judgment,  as  well, 
as  his  professional  duty,  were  on  the  side  of  the  people; 
he  then  requested  that  his  uncle  would  do  him  the 
favour  to  leave  the  ground.  "  Why,  Patrick,"  said  the 
old  gentleman  with  a  good-natured  smile,  "  as  to  your 
saying  hard  things  of  the  clergy,  I  advise  you  to  let  that 
alone — take  my  word  for  it,  you  will  do  yourself  more 
harm  than  you  will  them;  and  as  to  my  leaving  the 
ground,  I  fear,  my  boy,  that  my  presence  could  neither 
do  you  harm  or  good,  in  such  a  cause.  However,  since 
you  seem  to  think  otherwise,  and  desire  it  of  me,  so 
earnestly,  you  shall  be  gratified."  Whereupon,  he 
entered  his  carriage  again,  and  returned  home. 

Soon  after  the  opening  of  the  court,  the  cause  was 
called.  It  stood  on  a  writ  of  inquiry  of  damages,  no  plea 
having  been  entered  by  the  defendants  since  the  judg- 
ment on  the  demurrer.  The  array  before  Mr.  Henry's 
eyes  was  now  most  fearful.  On  the  bench  sat  more  than 
twenty  clergymen,  the  most  learned  men  in  the  colony, 
and  the  most  capable,  as  well  as  the  severest  critics  be- 
fore whom  it  was  possible  for  him  to  have  made  his  debut. 
The  court  house  was  crowded  with  an  overwhelming 
multitude,  and  surrounded  with  an  immense  and  anxious 
throng,  who  not  finding  room  to  enter,  were  endeavour- 
ing to  listen  without,  in  the  deepest  attention.  But  there 
was  something  still  more  awfully  disconcerting  than  all 
this;  for  in  the  chair  of  the  presiding  magistrate,  sat  no 
other  person,  than  his  own  father.     Mr.  Lyons  opened 


LIFE    OF    HENRY.'  25 

the  cause  veiy  briefly:  in  the  way  of  argument  he  did 
nothing  more  than  explain  to  the  jury,  that  the  decision 
upon  the  demurrer  had  put  the  act  of  1 750  entirely  out 
of  the  way,  and  left  the  law  of  1 748  as  the  only  stan- 
dard of  their  damages;  he  then  concluded  with  a  highly 
wrought  eulogium  on  the  benevolence  of  the  clergy. 
And,  now,  came  on  the  first  trial  of  Patrick  Henry's 
strength.  No  one  had  ever  heard  him  speak,  and  curi- 
osity was  on  tiptoe.  He  rose  very  awkwardly,  and  faul- 
tered  much  in  his  exordium.  The  people  hung  their 
heads  at  so  unpromising  a  commencement;  the  clergy 
were  observed  to  exchange  sly  looks  with  each  other; 
and  his  father  is  described  as  having  almost  sunk  with 
confusion,  from  his  seat.  But  these  feelings  were  of 
short  duration,  and  soon  gave  place  to  others,  of  a  very 
different  character.  For,  now,  were  those  wonderful 
faculties  which  he  possessed,  for  the  first  time  developed; 
and  now,  was  first,  witnessed  that  mysterious  and  almost 
supernatural  transformation  of  appearance,  which  the 
fire  of  his  own  eloquence  never  failed  to  work  in  him. 
For  as  his  mind  rolled  along,  and  began  to  glow  from 
its  own  action,  all  the  exuvice  of  the  clown,  seemed  to 
shed  themselves,  spontaneously.  His  attitude,  by  de- 
grees, became  erect  and  lofty.  The  spirit  of  his  genius 
awakened  all  his  features.  His  countenance  shone  with 
a  nobleness  and  grandeur  which  it  had  never  before 
exhibited.  There  was  a  lightning  in  his  eyes  which 
seemed  to  rive  the  spectator.  His  action  became  grace- 
ful, bold,  and  commanding;  and  in  the  tones  of  his  voice, 
but  more  especially  in  his  emphasis,  there  was  a  pecu- 
liar charm,  a  magic,  of  which  any  one  who  ever  heard 
him,  will  speak  as  soon  as  he  is  named,  but  of  which  no 
one  can  give  any  adequate  description.  They  can  only 
say  that  it  struck  upon  the  ear  and  upon  the  heart,  in  a 

D 


26  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

manner  which  language  cannot  tell.  Add  to  all  these, 
his  wonder-working  fancy,  and  the  peculiar  phraseology 
in  which  he  clothed  its  images;  for  he  painted  to  the  heart 
with  a  force  that  almost  petrified  it.  In  the  language 
of  those  who  heard  him  on  this  occasion,  "  he  made 
their  blood  run  cold,  and  their  hair  to  rise  on  end." 

It  will  not  be  difficult  for  any  one,  who  ever  heard 
this  most  extraordinary  man,  to  believe  the  whole 
account  of  this  transaction  which  is  given  by  his  sur- 
viving hearers;  and  from  their  account,  the  court  house 
of  Hanover  county,  must  have  exhibited  on  this  occa- 
sion, a  scene  as  picturesque,  as  has  been  ever  witness- 
ed in  real  life.  They  say,  that  the  people,  whose 
countenances  had  fallen  as  he  arose,  had  heard  but  a 
very  few  sentences  before  they  began  to  look  up;  then 
to  look  at  each  other  with  surprise,  as  if  doubting  the 
evidence  of  their  own  senses;  then,  attracted  by  some 
strong  gesture,  struck  by  some  majestic  attitude,  fasci- 
nated by  the  spell  of  his  eye,  the  charm  of  his  emphasis, 
and  the  varied  and  commanding  expression  of  his 
countenance,  they  could  look  away  no  more.  In  less 
than  twenty  minutes,  they  might  be  seen  in  every  part 
of  the  house,  on  every  bench,  in  eveiy  window,  stoop- 
ing forward  from  their  stands,  in  death-like  silence;  their 
features  fixed  in  amazement  and  awe;  all  their  senses 
listening  and  rivetted  upon  the  speaker,  as  if  to  catch 
the  last  strain  of  some  heavenly  visitant.  The  mockery 
of  the  clergy  was  soon  turned  into  alarm ;  their  triumph 
into  confusion  and  despair;  and  at  one  burst  of  his 
rapid  and  overwhelming  invective,  they  fled  from  the 
bench  in  precipitation  and  terror.  As  for  the  father, 
such  was  his  surprise,  such  his  amazement,  such  his 
rapture,  that,  forgetting  where  he  was,  and  the  character 
which  he  was  filling,  tears  of  ecstacy  streamed  down 


LIFE    OF    HENRY.  27 

his  cheeks,  without  the  power  or  inclination  to  repress 
them. 

The  jury  seem  to  have  been  so  completely  bewilder- 
ed, that  they  lost  sight  not  only  of  the  act  of  1 748,  but 
that  of  1758  also;  for  thoughtless  even  of  the  admitted 
right  of  the  plaintiff,  they  had  scarcely  left  the  bar, 
when  they  returned  with  a  verdict  of  one  penny  da- 
mages. A  motion  was  made  for  a  new  trial;  but  the 
court  too,  had  now  lost  the  equipoise  of  their  judgment, 
and  overruled  the  motion  by  an  unanimous  vote.  The 
verdict  and  judgment  overruling  the  motion,  were  fol- 
lowed by  redoubled  acclamation,  from  within  and  with- 
out the  house.  The  people,  who  had  with  difficulty  kept 
their  hands  off  their  champion,  from  the  moment  of 
closing  his  harangue,  no  sooner  saw  the  fate  of  the 
cause  finally  sealed,  than  they  seized  him  at  the  bar,  and 
in  spite  of  his  own  exertions,  and  the  continued  cry  of 
"  order"  from  the  sheriffs  and  the  court,  they  bore  him 
out  of  the  court  house,  and  raising  him  on  their 
shoulders,  carried  him  about  the  yard,  in  a  kind  of  elec- 
tioneering triumph. 

O!  what  a  scene  was  this  for  a  father's  heart!  so 
sudden;  so  unlooked  for;  so  delightfully  overwhelming! 
At  the  time,  he  was  not  able  to  give  utterance  to  any  sen- 
timent; but,  a  few  days  after,  when  speaking  of  it  to  Mr. 
Winston,*  he  said,  writh  the  most  engaging  modesty,  and 
with  a  tremor  of  voice,  which  showed  how  much  more 
he  felt  than  he  expressed;  "Patrick  spoke  in  this  cause, 
near  an  hour!  and  in  a  manner,  that  surprised  me!  and 
showed  himself  well  informed  on  a  subject,  of  which  I 
did  not  think  he  had  any  knowledge!" 

I  have  tried  much  to  procure  a  sketch  of  this  cele- 
brated speech.     But  those  of  Mr.  Henry's  hearers  who 

•  The  present  judge  Winston. 


28  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

survive,  seem  to  have  been  bereft  of  their  senses.  They 
can  only  tell  you  in  general,  that  they  were  taken  cap- 
tive; and  so  delighted  with  their  captivity,  that  they 
followed  implicitly,  whithersoever  he  led  them.  That, 
at  his  bidding,  their  tears  flowed  from  pity,  and  their 
cheeks  flushed  with  indignation.  That  when  it  was 
over,  they  felt  as  if  they  had  just  awaked  from  some 
ecstatic  dream,  of  which  they  were  unable  to  recal  or 
connect  the  particulars.  It  was  such  a  speech  as  they 
believe  had  never  before  fallen  from  the  lips  of  man; 
and  to  this  day,  the  old  people  of  that  county  cannot  con- 
ceive that  a  higher  compliment  can  be  paid  to  a  speaker, 
than  to  say  of  him,  in  their  own  homely  phrase,  "he  is 
almost  equal  to  Patrick,  when  he  plead  against  the  par- 
sons" 

The  only  topic  of  this  speech  of  which  any  authentic 
account  remains,  is  the  order  of  the  king  in  council 
whereby  the  act  of  1 758  had  been  declared  void.  This 
subject,  had  in  truth  been  disposed  of  by  the  demurrer; 
and,  in  strictness  of  proceeding,  neither  Mr.  Hemy  nor 
the  jury  had  any  thing  to  do  with  it.  The  laxity  of  the 
county  court  practice,  however,  indulged  him  in  the 
widest  career  he  chose  to  take,  and  he  laid  hold  of  this 
point,  neither  with  a  feeble  or  hesitating  hand;  but  boldly 
and  vigorously  pressed  it  upon  the  jury,  and  that,  too, 
with  very  powerful  effect.  He  insisted  on  the  connec- 
tion and  reciprocal  duties  between  the  king  and  his 
subjects;  maintained  that  government  was  a  conditional 
compact,  composed  of  mutual  and  dependent  covenants, 
of  which  a  violation  by  one  party  discharged  the  other; 
and  intrepidly  contended  that  the  disregard  which  had 
been  shown  in  this  particular,  to  the  pressing  wants  of  the 
colony,  was  an  instance  of  royal  misrule,  which  had  thus 
far  dissolved  the  political  compact,  and  left  the  people 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  29 

at  liberty  to  consult  their  own  safety;  that  they  had 
consulted  it  by  the  act  of  1 758,  which,  therefore,  not- 
withstanding the  dissent  of  the  king  and  his  council, 
ought  to  be  considered  as  the  law  of  the  land,  and  the 
only  legitimate  measure  of  the  claims  of  the  clergy. 

The  nature  of  this  topic,  and  the  earnest  and  un- 
daunted manner  in  which  Mr.  Henry  is  said  to  have 
pursued  and  maintained  it,  proves,  that  even  at  this  pe- 
riod, which  has  been  marked  as  the  era  of  our  greatest 
attachment  and  devotion  to  the  parent  country,  his 
mind  at  least,  was  disposed  to  piy  into  the  course  of  the 
regal  administration,  and  to  speak  forth  his  sentiments 
without  any  fear  of  the  consequences.  The  reception 
wThich  the  people  gave  to  the  argument,  proves  that  they 
also,  had  no  superstitious  repugnance  to  the  considera- 
tion of  such  topics,  nor  any  very  insuperable  horror  at 
the  idea  of  a  separation.  Not  that  there  is  ground  to 
suspect  that  any  one  had  at  this  time,  realized  such  an 
event,  or  even  contemplated  it  as  desirable.  The  sug- 
gestion, therefore,  which  I  have  sometimes  heard,  that 
Mr.  Henry  wras  already  meditating  the  independence  of 
the  colonies,  and  sowing  the  seeds  of  those  reflections 
which  he  wished  to  ripen  into  revolt,  is  in  my  opinion, 
rather  curious  than  just.  I  believe  that  he  thought  of 
nothing  beyond  success  in  his  cause;  and  since  the  des- 
perate posture  in  which  he  found  it,  demanded  a  daring 
and  eccentric  course,  he  adopted  that  which  has  been 
already  stated.  The  character  of  his  argument,  proves 
indeed,  that  he  was  naturally  a  bold  and  intrepid  en- 
quirer, who  was  not  to  be  overawed  from  his  purpose 
by  the  name  even  of  sovereignty  itself;  and  of  course 
that  he  was  made  of  good  revolutionary  materials.  But 
an  adequate  provocation  had  not,  at  this  time,  been 
given:  and  it  would  be  imputing  to  Mr.  Henry  a  crimi- 


30  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

nal  ambition,  of  which  there  is  no  proof!,  to  suppose 
that  he  was  meditating  the  subversion  of  a  government, 
against  which  the  voice  of  serious  complaint  had  not 
yet  been  heard.  Besides,  Mr.  Henry's  standing  in  so- 
ciety was  at  this  period  so  humble,  as  to  have  rendered 
the  meditation  of  such  a  purpose,  on  his  part,  presump- 
tuous in  the  extreme;  and  equally  inconsistent  both  with 
his  unassuming  modesty,  and  that  natural  good  sense 
and  accurate  judgment,  which  are  on  all  hands,  assigned 
to  him. 

Immediately  on  the  decision  of  this  cause,  he  was 
retained  in  all  the  cases,  within  the  range  of  his  prac- 
tice, which  depended  on  the  same  question.  But  no 
other  case  was  ever  brought  to  trial.  They  were  all, 
throughout  the  colony,  dismissed  by  the  plaintiffs;  nor 
was  any  appeal  ever  prosecuted  in  the  case  of  Mr. 
Maury,  The  reason  assigned  for  this  by  Mr.  Camm,  is, 
that  the  legislature  had  voted  money  to  support  the  ap- 
peal on  the  part  of  the  defendants,  and  that  the  clergy 
were  not  rich  enough  to  contend  against  the  whole 
wealth  and  strength  of  the  colony.* 

The  clergy  took  their  revenge  in  an  angry  pamphlet 
from  the  pen  of  Mr.   Camm,  in  which  a  very  con- 

*  Mr.  Camm  is  right  as  to  the  interference  of  the  legislature.  I  have  not 
been  able,  however,  to  find  any  resolution  of  the  legislature,  to  this  effect, 
earlier  than  the  7th  of  April,  1767 :  whereas  Mr.  Maury's  case  was  decided 
in  Hanover,  on  the  1st  December,  1763.  The  following  is  extracted  from 
the  journal  of  the  day,  first  mentioned. 

"  On  a  motion  made, 

"  Resolved,  that  the  committee  of  correspondence  be  directed  to  write 
to  the  agent,  to  defend  the  parish  collectors  from  all  appeals  from  judgments 
here  given,  in  suits  brought  by  the  clergy,  for  recovering  their  salaries,  pay- 
able on  or  before  the  last  day  of  May,  1759  ;  and  that  this  house  will  engage 
te  defray  the  expense  thereof." 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  31 

temptuous  account  is  given  both  of  the  advocate  and 
the  court.  Mr.  Henry  is  stigmatized  in  it  as  an  obscure 
attorney;  and  the  epithet  was  true  enough  as  to  the 
time  past,  but  it  was  now  true  no  longer.  His  sun  had 
risen  with  a  splendour  which  had  never  before  been 
witnessed  in  this  colony;  and  never  afterward,  did  it  dis- 
grace this  glorious  rising. 


!>$■ 


SKETCHES  OF  THE 


SECTION  II. 

It  is  almost  unnecessary  to  state  that  the  display 
which  Mr.  Henry  had  made  in  "  the  parsons'  cause"  as 
it  was  popularly  called,  placed  him,  at  once,  at  the  head 
of  his  profession,  in  that  quarter  of  the  colony  in  which 
he  practised.  He  became  the  theme  of  every  tongue. 
He  had  exhibited  a  degree  of  eloquence,  which  the 
people  had  never  before  witnessed;  a  species  of  elo- 
quence too,  entirely  new  at  the  bar,  and  altogether  his 
own.  He  had  formed  it  on  no  living  model;  for  there 
was  none  such  in  the  country.  He  had  not  copied  it 
from  books,  for  they  had  described  nothing  of  the  kind; 
or  if  they  had,  he  was  a  stranger  to  their  contents.  Nor 
had  he  formed  it  himself,  by  solitary  study  and  exercise; 
for  he  was  far  too  indolent  for  any  such  process.  It  was 
so  unexampled,  so  unexpected,  so  instantaneous,  and  so 
transcendent  in  its  character,  that  it  had,  to  the  people, 
very  much  the  appearance  of  supernatural  inspiration. 
He  was  styled  "the  orator  of  nature:"  and  was,  on  that 
account,  much  more  revered  by  the  people  than  if  he 
had  been  formed  by  the  severest  discipline  of  the 
schools  ;  for  they  considered  him  as  bringing 'his  creden- 
tials directly  from  heaven,  and  owing  no  part  of  his  great- 
ness to  human  institutions. 

There  were  other  considerations  also,  which  drew 
him  still  more  closely  to  the  bosom  of  the  people.  The 
society  of  Virginia,  was  at  that  time  pretty  strongly 
discriminated.  A  gentleman  who  lived  in  those  days, 
and  who  had  the  best  opportunities  of  judging  on  the 
subject,  has  furnished  the  following  interesting  picture 
of  it. 


I4FE  OF  HENRY.  33 

"  To  state  the  differences  between  the  classes  of  the 
society  and  the  lines  of  demarcation  which  separated 
them,  would  be  difficult.  The  law,  you  know,  admitted 
none,  except  as  to  the  twelve  counsellors.  Yet  in  a  coun- 
try insulated  from  the  European  world,  insulated  from 
its  sister  colonies,  with  whom  there  was  scarcely  any 
intercourse,  little  visited  by  foreigners,  and  having  little 
matter  to  act  upon  within  itself,  certain  families  had  risen 
to  splendour  by  wealth,  and  by  the  preservation  of  it 
from  generation  to  generation  under  the  law  of  entails; 
some  had  produced  a  series  of  men  of  talents;  families 
in  general  had  remained  stationary  on  the  grounds  of 
their  forefathers,  for  there  was  no  emigration  to  the 
westward  in  those  days;  the  Irish,  who  had  gotten  pos- 
session of  the  valley  between  the  Blue  Ridge  and  the 
North  Mountain,  formed  a  barrier  over  which  none 
ventured  to  leap;  and  their  manners  presented  no  attrac- 
tion to  the  lowlanders  to  settle  among  them.  In  such 
a  state  of  things,  scarcely  admitting  any  change  of 
station,  society  would  settle  itself  down  into  several 
strata,  separated  by  no  marked  lines,  but  shading  off 
imperceptibly  from  top  to  bottom,  nothing  disturbing 
the  order  of  their  repose.  There  were,  then,  first 
aristocrats,  composed  of  the  great  landholders  who  had 
seated  themselves  below  tide  water  on  the  main  rivers, 
and  lived  in  a  style  of  luxury  and  extravagance,  insupport- 
able by  the  other  inhabitants,  and  which,  indeed,  ended, 
in  several  instances,  in  the  ruin  of  their  own  fortunes. 
Next  to  these  were  what  might  be  called  half  breeds; 
the  descendants  of  the  younger  sons  and  daughters  of 
the  aristocrats,  who  inherited  the  pride  of  their  ances- 
tors, without  their  wealth.  Then  came  the  pretenders, 
men  who  from  vanity,  or  the  impulse  of  growing  wealth, 
or  from  that  enterprise  which  is  natural  to  talents, 

E 


34  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

sought  to  detach  themselves  from  the  plebeian  rants,  to 
which  they  properly  belonged,  and  imitated,  at  some 
distance,  the  manners  and  habits  of  the  great.  Next  to 
these,  were  a  solid  and  independent  yeomanry,  looking 
askance  at  those  above,  yet  not  venturing  to  jostle  them. 
And  last  and  lowest,  a  feculum  of  beings  called  over- 
seers, the  most  abject,  degraded,  unprincipled  race ; 
always  cap  in  hand  to  the  dons  who  employed  them,  and 
furnishing  materials  for  the  exercise  of  their  pride,  inso- 
lence, and  spirit  of  domination." 

It  was  from  the  body  of  the  yeomanry,  whom  my 
correspondent  represents  as  "  looking  askance"  at  those 
above  them,  that  Mr.  Henry  proceeded.  He  belonged 
to  the  body  of  the  people.  His  birth,  education,  fortune, 
and  manners,  made  him  one  of  themselves.  They  re- 
garded him,  therefore,  as  their  own  property,  and  sent 
to  them,  expressly  for  the  very  purpose  of  humbling 
the  pride  of  the  mighty,  and  exalting  the  honour  of  his 
own  class. 

Mr.  Henry  had  too  much  sagacity  not  to  see  this 
advantage,  and  too  much  good  sense  not  to  keep  and  to 
improve  it.  He  seems  to  have  formed  to  himself,  very 
early  in  life,  just  views  of  society,  and  to  have  acted 
upon  them  with  the  most  laudable  system  and  persever- 
ance. He  regarded  government  as  instituted  solely 
for  the  good  of  the  people;  and  not  for  the  benefit  of 
those,  who  had  contrived  to  make  a  job  of  it.  He  look- 
ed upon  the  body  of  the  people,  therefore,  as  the  basis 
of  society,  the  fountain  of  all  power,  and,  directly  or 
indirectly,  of  all  offices  and  honours,  which  had  been  in- 
stituted, originally,  for  their  use.  He  made  it  no  secret, 
therefore,  nay  he  made  it  his  boast,  that  on  every  occa- 
sion, "  he  bowed  to  the  majesty  of  the  people/'  With 
regard  to  himself,  he  saw,  very  distinctly,  that  all  his 


LIFEV)F    HENRY.  35 

hopes  rested  on  the  peopled  favour.  He,  therefore, 
adhered  to  them  with  unshaken  fidelity.  He  retained 
their  manners,  their  customs,  all  their  modes  of  life,  with 
religious  caution.  He  dressed  as  plainly  as  the  plainest 
of  them;  ate  only  the  homely  fare,  and  drank  the  sim- 
ple beverage  of  the  country;  mixed  with  them  on  a 
footing  of  the  most  entire  and  perfect  equality,  and  con- 
versed with  them,  even  in  their  own  vicious  and  deprav- 
ed pronunciation* 

If  this  last  were  the  effect  of  artful  compliance,  as 
has  been  strenuously  affirmed,  it  was  certainly  carry- 
ing the  system  farther  than  dignity  would  warrant.  Mr. 
Henry  should  have  been  the  instructor  as  well  as  the 
friend  of  the  people,  and  by  his  example,  have  correct- 
ed, instead  of  adopting  their  errors.  It  is  very  certain, 
that  by  this  course  he  disgusted  many  of  those  whom 
it  was  often  his  business  to  persuade;  not  because  they 
considered  it  as  a  proof  of  vulgarity  and  ignorance,  but 
because  they  regarded  it  as  a  premeditated  artifice  to 
catch  the  favour  and  affections  of  the  people.  That  it 
was  so,  I  am  not  disposed  to  believe.  I  think  it  much 
more  probable,  that  those  errors  of  pronunciation  were 
the  effect  of  early  and  inveterate  habit,  which  had 
become  incurable  before  he  was  informed  of  his  mis- 
take. He  had  no  occasion  to  resort  to  such  petty  arti- 
fices, either  to  gain  or  to  hold  the  affections  of  the  peo- 
ple. He  held  them  by  a  much  higher  and  a  much 
firmer  title;  the  simplicity  of  his  manners;  the  bene- 

*  Governor  Page  relates,  that  he  once  heard  him  express  the  following 
sentiments,  in  this  vicious  pronunciation  :  "JYaiteral  parts  is  better  than  all 
the  larnin  upon  yearth ,-"  but  the  accuracy  of  Mr.  Page's  memory  is  ques- 
tioned in  this  particular,  by  the  acquaintances  of  Mr.  Henry,  who  say,  that 
he  was  too  good  a  grammarian  to  have  uttered  such  a  sentence,  although 
they  admit  the  inaccuracy  of  his  pronunciation,  in  some  of  the  words  impute 
ed  to  hinir 


30  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

volence  of  his  disposition;  the  integrity  of  his  life;  his 
real  devotion  to  their  best  interests;  that  uncommon 
sagacity  which  enabled  him  to  discern  those  interests 
in  every  situation;  and  the  unshaken  constancy  with 
which  he  pursued  them,  in  spite  of  every  difficulty  and 
danger  that  could  threaten  him.  From  the  point  of 
time  of  which  we  are  now  speaking,  it  is  very  certain 
that  he  suffered  no  gale  of  fortune,  however  high  or 
prosperous,  to  separate  him  from  the  people.  Nor  did 
the  people,  on  their  part,  ever  desert  him.  He  was  the 
man  to  whom  they  looked  in  every  crisis  of  difficulty, 
and  the  favourite  on  whom  they  were  ever  ready  to  lavish 
all  the  honours  in  their  gift. 

Middleton,  in  his  life  of  Cicero,  tells  us  that  the  first 
great  speech  of  that  orator,  his  defence  of  Roscius 
the  actor,  was  made  at  the  age  of  twenty-seven;  the 
same  age,  he  adds,  at  which  the  learned  have  remark- 
ed, that  Demosthenes  distinguished  himself  'in  the 
assembly  of  the  Athenians:  "As  if  this  were  the  age" 
(I  quote  his  own  words)  "  at  which  these  great  genios 
regularly  bloomed  towards  maturity."  It  is  rather 
curious,  than  important,  to  observe,  that  Mr.  Henry 
furnishes  another  instance  in  support  of  this  theory; 
since  it  was  precisely  in  the  same  year  of  his  life,  that 
his  talents  first  became  known  to  himself  and  to  the 
world.  Nor  let  the  admirer  of  antiquity  revolt  at  our 
coupling  the  name  of  Henry,  with  those  of  Cicero  and 
Demosthenes:  it  can  be  no  degradation  to  the  orator 
either  of  Greece  or  Rome,  that  his  name  stands  enroll- 
ed, on  the  same  page,  with  that  of  a  man  of  whom  such 
a  judge  of  eloquence  as  Mr.  Jefferson  has  said,  that 
"  he  was  the  greatest  orator  that  ever  lived.''7 

Rut  the  taste  of  professional  fame,  which  Mr.  Henry 
had  derived  from  the  "  parsons5  cause,"  exquisite  as  it 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  87 

must  have  been,  was  not  sufficient  to  inspire  him  with  a 
thirst  for  the  learning  of  his  profession.  He  had  an 
insuperable  aversion  to  the  old  black  letter  of  the  law 
books,  (which  was  often  a  topic  of  raillery  with  him,) 
and  he  was  never  able  to  conquer  it,  except  for  prepa- 
ration in  some  particular  cause.  No  love  of  distinction, 
no  necessity  however  severe,  were  strong  enough  to 
bind  him  down  to  a  regular  course  of  reading.  He 
could  not  brook  the  confinement.  The  reasoning  of 
the  law  was  too  artificial,  and  too  much  cramped  for 
him.  Whilst  unavoidably  engaged  in  it,  he  felt  as  if 
manacled.  His  mind  was  perpetually  struggling  to 
break  away.  His  genius  delighted  in  liberty  and  space, 
in  which  it  might  roam  at  large,  and  feast  on  every 
variety  of  intellectual  enjoyment.  Hence  he  was  never 
profound  in  the  learning  of  the  law.  On  a  question 
merely  legal,  his  inferiors,  in  point  of  talents,  frequently 
embarrassed  and  foiled  him ;  and  it  required  all  the  re- 
sources of  his  extraordinary  mind,  to  support  the  distinc- 
tion which  he  had  now  gained. 

The  most  successful  practice  in  the  county  courts, 
was  in  those  days,  but  a  slender  dependance  for  a  fa- 
mily. Notwithstanding  therefore,  the  great  addition  to 
his  business  which  we  have  noticed,  Mr.  Henry  seems 
still  to  have  been  pressed  by  want.  With  the  hope  of 
improving  his  situation,  he  removed,  in  the  year  1 764,  to 
the  county  of  Louisa,  and  resided  at  a  place  called 
the  Roundabout.  Here  I  have  learned  nothing  re- 
markable of  him,  unless  it  may  be  thought  so,  that  he 
pursued  his  favourite  amusement  of  hunting  with  in- 
creased ardour.  "  After  his  removal  to  Louisa/'  says 
my  informant,  "  he  has  been  known  to  hunt  deer,  fre- 
quently for  several  days  together,  carrying  his  provision 
with  him,  and  at  night  encamping  in  the  woods.     After 


38  SKETCHED  OF  THE 

the  hunt  was  over,  he  would  go  from  the  ground  to 
Louisa  court,  clad  in  a  coarse  cloth  coat  stained  with 
all  the  trophies  of  the  chase,  greasy  leather  breeches 
ornamented  in  the  same  way,  leggings  for  boots,  and  a 
pair  of  saddle-bags  on  his  arm.  Thus  accoutred,  he 
would  enter  the  court  house,  take  up  the  first  of  his 
causes  that  chanced  to  be  called;  and  if  there  was  any 
scope  for  his  peculiar  talent,  throw  his  adversary  into 
the  back  ground,  and  astonish  both  court  and  jury  by 
the  powerful  effusions  of  his  natural  eloquence/' 

There  must  have  been  something  irresistibly  capti- 
vating in  Mr.  Henry's  mode  of  speaking,  even  on  the 
most  trivial  subjects.  The  late  judge  Lyons  has  been 
heard  to  say  of  himself,  while  practising  with  Mr.  Hen- 
ry, "  that  he  could  write  a  letter,  or  draw  a  declaration 
or  plea  at  the  bar,  with  as  much  accuracy  as  he  could 
in  his  office,  under  all  circumstances,  except  when  Pa- 
trick rose  to  speak;  but  that  whenever  he  rose,  al- 
though it  might  be  on  so  trifling  a  subject  as  a  summons 
and  petition,  for  twenty  shillings,  he  was  obliged  to  lay 
down  his  pen,  and  could  not  write  another  word,  until 
the  speech  was  finished."  Such  was  the  charm  of  his 
voice  and  manner,  and  the  interesting  originality  of  his 
conceptions! 

In  the  fall  of  1764,  Mr.  Henry  had  an  opportunity 
of  exhibiting;  himself  on  a  new  theatre.  A  contest 
occurred  in  the  house  of  burgesses,  in  the  case  of  Mr. 
James  Littlepage,  the  returned  member  for  the  county 
of  Hanover.  The  rival  candidate  and  petitioner  was 
Nathaniel  West  Dandridge*    The  charge  against  Mr. 

*  Here  is  another  mistake  of  Mr.  Burk's.  He  states  the  contest  to  have 
been  between  col.  Syme  (Mr.  Henry's  half  brother)  and  col.  Richard  Lit- 
tlepage. The  journal  contradicts  him,  and  supports  the  text.  There  was 
no  such  contest  as  that  of  which  he  speaks;  at  least  between  the  years  1762 
and  1768. 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  39 

Littlepage  was  bribery  and  corruption.  The  parties 
were  heard  by  their  counsel,  before  the  committee  of 
privileges  and  elections,  and  Mr.  Henry  was  on  this  oc- 
casion employed  by  Mr.  Dandridge. 

Williamsburg,  then  the  seat  of  government,  was  the 
focus  of  fashion  and  high  life.  The  residence  of  the 
governor,  (the  immediate  representative  of  the  sove- 
reign,) the  royal  state  in  which  he  lived,  the  polite  and 
brilliant  circle  which  he  always  had  about  him,  diffused 
their  influence  through  the  city  and  the  circumjacent 
country,  and  filled  Williamsburg  with  a  degree  of  emu- 
lation, taste,  and  elegance,  of  which  we  can  form  no 
conception  by  the  appearances  of  the  present  day. 
During  the  session  of  the  house  of  burgesses,  too,  these 
stately  modes  of  life  assumed  their  richest  forms;  the 
town,  was  filled  with  a  concourse  of  visitors,  as  well  as 
citizens,  attired  in  their  gayest  colours;  the  streets, 
exhibited  a  continual  scene  of  animated  and  glittering 
tumult;  the  houses,  of  costly  profusion. 

Such  was  the  scene  in  which  Mr.  Henry  was  now 
called  upon,  for  the  first  time,  to  make  his  appearance. 
He  made  no  preparation  for  it,  but  went  down  just  in 
the  kind  of  garb  which  he  had  been  accustomed  to  ex- 
hibit all  his  life,  and  is  said  to  have  worn,  on  this  occa- 
sion particularly,  a  suit  which  had  suffered  very  consi- 
derably in  the  service.  The  contrast  which  he  exhi- 
bited, with  the  general  elegance  of  the  place,  was  so 
striking,  as  to  call  upon  him  the  eyes  of  nil  the  curious 
and  the  mischievous;  and,  as  he  moved  awkwardly 
about,  in  his  coarse  and  threadbare  dress,  with  a  coun- 
tenance of  abstraction  and  total  unconcern  as  to  what 
was  passing  around  him,  (interesting  as  it  seemed  to 
every  one  else,)  he  was  stared  at  by  some  as  a  prodigy, 
and  regarded  by  others  as  an  unfortunate  being,  whose 


40  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

senses  were  disordered.  When  he  went  to  attend  the 
committee  of  privileges  and  elections,  the  matter  was 
still  worse.  "  The  proud  airs  of  aristocracy/'  says 
judge  Tyler,  detailing  this  incident  of  Mr.  Henry's  life, 
"  added  to  the  dignified  forms  of  that  truly  august  body, 
were  enough  to  have  deterred  any  man  possessing  less 
firmness  and  independence  of  spirit  than  Mr.  Henry. 
He  was  ushered  with  great  state  and  ceremony  into  the 
room  of  the  committee,  whose  chairman  was  col, 
Bland.*  Mr.  Henry  was  dressed  in  very  coarse  apparel ; 
no  one  knew  any  thing  of  him,f  and  scarcely  was  he 
treated  with  decent  respect  by  any  one  except  the  chair- 
man, who  could  not  do  so  much  violence  to  his  feelings 
and  principles,  as  to  depart  on  any  occasion,  from  the 
delicacy  of  the  gentleman.  But  the  general  contempt 
was  soon  changed  into  as  general  admiration;  for  Mr. 
Henry  distinguished  himself  by  a  copious  and  brilliant 
display  on  the  great  subject  of  the  rights  of  suffrage, 
superior  to  any  thing  that  had  been  heard  before  within 
those  walls.  Such  a  burst  of  eloquence,  from  a  man 
so  very  plain  and  ordinary  in  his  appearance,  struck 
the  committee  with  amazement;  so  that  a  deep  and 


*  Mr.  Tyler  says,  "  that  enlightened  and  amiable  man,  John  Blair ;"  but 
in  this  he  is  corrected  by  the  journal,  which  shows  that  Mr.  Bland  was  the 
-chairman  of  the  committee  of  privileges  and  elections  for  that  year.  I 
should  have  thought,  from  the  general  accuracy  of  Mr.  Tyler's  statement, 
that  Mr.  Blair  might  have  been  officiating  as  chairman  pro  tempore,  in  the  ab- 
sence of  col.  Bland  ;  but  that  Mr.  Blair  does  not  appear,  by  the  journal,  to 
have  belonged  to  the  committee,  or  even  to  have  been  a  member  of  the 
house  in  1764.     His  name  does  not  appear  till  1766. 

Mr.  Tyler,  reciting  Mr.  Henry's  own  narrative,  after  a  lapse  of  several 
years,  might  very  easily  have  confounded  two  names  as  similar  as  those  of 
Bland  and  Blair. 

f  That  is,  I  presume,  of  his  person  ;  for  after  the  very  splendid  exhibi- 
tion which  he  made  in  the  parsons'  cause,  his  name  could  not  have  been 
wholly  unknown  :  the  text,  however,  gives  the  words  of  my  correspondent 
faithfully. 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  41 

perfect  silence  took  place  during  the  speech,  and  not  a 
sound  but  from  his  lips  was  to  be  heard  in  the  room." 
So  far,  judge  Tyler.  Judge  Winston,  relating  the  same 
incident,  says,  "  Some  time  after,  a  member  of  the 
house,  speaking  to  me  of  this  occurrence,  said,  he  had, 
for  a  day  or  two,  observed  an  ill-dressed  young  man 
sauntering  in  the  lobby;  that  he  seemed  to  be  a  stran- 
ger to  every  body,  and  he  had  not  the  curiosity  to  en- 
quire his  name;  but,  that  attending  when  the  case  of 
the  contested  election  came  on,  he  was  surprised  to  find 
this  same  person  counsel  for  one  of  the  parties;  and 
and  still  more  so,  when  he  delivered  an  argument  su- 
perior to  any  thing  he  had  ever  heard."  The  case, 
according  to  the  report  of  the  committee  of  privileges 
and  elections,  is  not  one  which  seems  to  present  much 
scope  for  a  very  interesting  discussion:  but  Mr.  Henry's 
was  one  of  those  minds  which  impart  interest  to  every 
subject  they  touch. 

This  same  year  1 764,  is  memorable  for  the  origina- 
tion of  that  great  question  which  led  finally  to  the  inde- 
pendence of  the  United  States.  It  has  been  said  by  a 
gentleman,  at  least  as  well  qualified  to  judge  as  any  other 
now  alive,*  that  "  Mr.  Henry  certainly  gave  the  first 
impulse  to  the  ball  of  the  revolution."  In  order  to  show 
the  correctness  of  this  position,  it  is  proper  to  ascertain 
the  precise  point  to  which  the  controversy  with  Great 
Britain  had  advanced,  when  Mr.  Henry  first  presented 
himself  in  the  character  of  a  statesman. 

In  March,  1764,  the  British  parliament  had  passed 
resolutions,  preparatory  to  the  levying  a  revenue  on  the 
colonies  by  a  stamp  tax.  Those  resolutions  were  com- 
municated to  the  house  of  burgesses  of  Virginia,  through 

*  Mr.  Jefferson, 

F 


42  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

their  committee  of  correspondence,  by  the  colonial  agent; 
and  having  been  maturely  considered,  resulted  in  the 
appointment  of  a  special  committee  to  prepare  an  ad- 
dress to  the  king,  a  memorial  to  the  lords,  and  a  re- 
monstrance to  the  house  of  commons.  On  the  1 8th  of 
December,  1764,  these  papers  were  reported,  and  (after 
various  amendments,  which  considerably  diluted  their 
spirit)  received  the  concurrence  of  the  council.  The 
reader  will  perceive,  on  perusing  them,*  that,  while  they 
affirm  in  clear  and  strong  terms,  the  constitutional  ex- 
emption of  the  colony  from  taxation  by  the  British  par- 
liament, they  breathe  nevertheless,  a  tone  so  suppliant, 
and  exhibit  such  a  picture  of  anticipated  suffering  from 
the  pressure  of  the  tax  on  the  exhausted  resources  of  the 
colony,  as  to  indicate  that  no  opposition  beyond  remon- 
strance, was  at  this  time,  meditated.  Remonstrance, 
however,  was  vain.  In  January,  1765,  the  famous 
stamp  act  was  passed,  to  take  effect  in  the  colonies  on 
the  first  of  November  following.  The  annunciation  of 
this  measure  seems  at  first  to  have  stunned  the  continent, 
from  one  extremity  to  the  other.  The  presses  which 
spread  the  intelligence  among  the  people,  were  them- 
selves manifestly  confounded;  and  so  far  from  inspiring 
the  energy  of  resistance,  they  seemed  rather  disposed  to 
have  looked  out  for  topics  of  consolation^  under  sub- 
mission.! The  truth  is  that  all  ranks  of  society  were 
confounded.  No  one  knew  what  to  hope,  what  more  to 
fear,  or  what  course  was  best  to  be  taken.     Some, 

*  See  Appendix.  Note  A. 

-J-  Thus  in  the  Pennsylvania  Gazette  of  the  30th  of  May,  1765 — "  We  hear 
the  sum  of  money  arising  from  the  new  stamp  duties  in  North  America,  for 
the  first  five  years,  are  chiefly  to  be  applied  towards  making  commodious 
post-roads  from  one  province  to  another,  erecting  bridges  where  necessary, 
and  other  measures  equally  important  to  facilitate  an  extensive  trade." 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  43 

indeed,  were  fond  enough  to  entertain  hopes  that,  the 
united  remonstrances  of  the  colonial  legislatures,  the 
fate  of  which  had  not  yet  been  heard,  might  induce  the 
mother  country  to  change  her  policy;  these  hopes  how- 
ever, were  faint;  and  few  there  were  that  entertained 
them.  Many  considered  submission  in  the  present  state 
of  the  colonies,  as  unavoidable;  and  that  this  was  the 
opinion  of  Doctor  Franklin  himself,  is  apparent  from 
the  remark  with  which  he  took  leave  of  Mr.  Ingersoll, 
on  his  departure  for  America*  The  idea  of  resistance 
by  force,  was  no  where  glanced  at  in  the  most  distant 
manner;  no  heart  seems  to  have  been  bold  enough  at 
first,  to  conceive  it.  Men,  on  other  occasions  marked 
for  intrepidity  and  decision,  now  hung  back;  unwilling  to 
submit,  and  yet  afraid  to  speak  out  in  the  language  of 
bold  and  open  defiance.  It  was  just  at  this  moment  of 
despondency  in  some  quarters,  suspense  in  others,  and 
surly  and  reluctant  submission  wherever  submission 
appeared,  that  Patrick  Henry  stood  forth  to  raise  the 
drooping  spirit  of  the  people,  and  to  unite  all  hearts  and 
hands  in  the  cause  of  his  country.  With  the  view  of 
making  way  for  him  and  placing  him  in  the  public  coun- 
cils of  the  country,  Mr.  William  Johnson,  who  had  been 
elected  a  member  of  the  house  of  burgesses  for  the 
county  of  Louisa,  vacated  his  seat  by  accepting  the  com- 
mission of  coroner.  The  writ  of  election  to  supply  his 
place  was  awarded  on  the  first  of  May,  1765,  and  on 
the  20th  day  of  that  month,  it  appears  by  the  journals, 
that  Mr.  Hemy  was  added  to  the  committee  for  courts 
of  justice. 

Here,  again,  he  was  upon  a  new  theatre,  and  per- 
sonally unknown,  except  to  those  few  who  might  have 

*  "  Go  home  and  tell  your  countrymen  to  get  children  as  fast  as  they 
can."— GoEDax, 


44  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

heard  his  argument  on  the  contested  election  of  Mr. 
Littlepage,  the  preceding  winter.  His  dress  and  man- 
ners were  still  those  of  the  plain  planter,  and  in  his  per- 
sonal appearance,  there  was  nothing  to  excite  curiosity 
or  awaken  expectation.  The  forms  of  the  house,  of 
which  he  was  now  for  the  first  time  a  member,  were, 
as  has  been  stated,  most  awfully  dignified;  its  active 
members  were  composed  of  the  landed  aristocracy  and 
their  adherents;  and  amongst  them  were  men  to  whose 
superiority  of  talents,  as  well  as  influence  and  power, 
the  yeomanry  of  the  country  had  long  been  accustomed 
to  bow,  with  tacit  and  submissive  deference. 

John  Robinson,  the  speaker  of  the  house,  was  one  of 
the  most  opulent  men  in  the  colony,  and  the  acknow- 
ledged head  of  its  landed  aristocracy.  He  had  now 
filled  the  chair  of  the  house  with  great  dignity,  and 
without  interruption,  for  five  and  twenty  years.  He  was, 
also,  the  colonial  treasurer;  and  from  the  high  offices 
which  he  held,  in  connexion  with  the  regal  government, 
was  as  warmly  attached  to  its  authority  by  interest,  as 
he  was  by  taste  and  fashion,  to  all  the  grandeur  of  its 
forms.  But,  notwithstanding  this  close  alliance  with 
the  court,  his  personal  influence,  in  every7  class  of 
society  was  very  great;  and  he  held  that  influence  by  a 
tenure  far  superior  to  any  that  his  own  vast  wealth  or  the 
power  of  the  crown  could  confer.  For  he' possessed  a 
strong  and  well  informed  mind,  enlarged  and  corrected 
by  great  experience,  and  he  united  with  it,  a  benevolence 
of  spirit  and  a  courtesy  of  manners,  which  never 
failed  to  attach  every  heart  that  approached  him.  The 
poor  drew  near  to  him  without  awe  or  embarrassment; 
they  came  indeed,  with  filial  confidence ;  for  they  never 
failed  to  find  in  him,  a  sympathetic  friend,  and  an  able 
counsellor.     The  rich  enjoyed  in  him  an  easy,  enlight- 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  45 

ened,  and  instructive  companion;  and,  next  to  the 
governor,  regarded  him  as  the  highest  model  of  elegance 
and  fashion.  An  anecdote  is  related  of  this  gentleman, 
which  displays  in  a  strong  and  amiable  light,  the  exalted 
force  of  his  feelings,  and  the  truly  noble  cast  of  his  man- 
ners. When  col.  Washington  (the  immortal  saviour 
of  his  country)  had  closed  his  career  in  the  French  and 
Indian  war,  and  had  become  a  member  of  the  house  of 
burgesses,  the  speaker,  Robinson,  was  directed  by  a 
vote  of  the  house,  to  return  their  thanks  to  that  gentle- 
man, on  behalf  of  the  colony,  for  the  distinguished  mili- 
tary services  which  he  had  rendered  to  his  country.  As 
goon  as  col.  Washington  took  his  seat,  Mr.  Robinson, 
in  obedience  to  this  order,  and  following  the  impulse  of 
his  own  generous  and  grateful  heart,  discharged  the 
duty,  with  great  dignity,  but  with  such  warmth  of 
colouring  and  strength  of  expression,  as  entirely  con- 
founded the  young  hero.  He  rose  to  express  his  ac- 
knowledgments for  the  honour;  but  such  was  his  trepi- 
dation and  confusion,  that  he  could  not  give  distinct 
utterance  to  a  single  syllable.  He  blushed,  stammered, 
and  trembled,  for  a  second;  when  the  speaker  relieved 
him,  by  a  stroke  of  address  that  would  have  clone  honour 
to  Louis  the  XIV.  in  his  proudest  and  happiest  mo- 
ment. "  Sit  down,  Mr.  Washington,"  said  he,  with  a 
conciliating  smile;  "your  modesty  is  equal  to  your 
valour;  and  that  surpasses  the  power  of  any  language 
that  I  possess/'* 

Peyton  Randolph,  the  king's  attorney  general,  held 
the  next  rank  to  the  speaker.  He  was  not  distinguished 
for  eloquence;  but  he  derived  great  weight  from  the 
solid  powers  of  his  understanding,  and  the  no  less  solid 

*  On  the  authority  of  Edmund  Randolph. 


46  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

virtues  of  his  heart.  He  was  well  acquainted  with  all 
the  forms  of  parliamentary  proceeding;  was  an  eminent 
lawyer,  and  a  well  informed  and  practical  statesman. 

Richard  Bland  was  one  of  the  most  enlightened  men 
in  the  colonv.  He  was  a  man  of  finished  education, 
and  of  the  most  unbending  habits  of  application.  His 
perfect  mastery  ofeveiy  fact  connected  with  the  settle- 
ment and  progress  of  the  colony,  had  given  him  the 
name  of  the  Virginian  Antiquary  *  He  was  a  politi- 
cian of  the  first  class;  a  profound  logician,  and  was  also 
considered  as  the  first  writer  in  the  colony.f 

Edward  Pendleton,  the  protege  of  the  speaker  Robin- 
son, was  also,  among  the  most  prominent  members  in 
the  house.  He  had,  in  a  great  measure,  overcome  the 
disadvantages  of  an  extremely  defective  education,  and, 
by  the  force  of  good  company  and  the  study  of  correct 
authors;,  had  attained  to  great  accuracy  and  perspicuity 
of  style.  The  patronage  of  the  speaker  had  introduced 
him  to  the  first  circles,  and  his  manners  were  elevated, 
graceful  and  insinuating.  His  person  was  spare,  but 
well  proportioned;  and  his  countenance  one  of  the  finest 
in  the  world:  serene — contemplative — benignant — with 


*  Edmund  Randolph. 

•J-  "  He  was,"  says  a  correspondent,  "  the  most  learned  and  logical  man 
of  those  who  took  a  pi'ominent  lead  in  public  affairs ;  profound  in  constitu- 
tional lore  ;  but  a  most  ungraceful  speaker  in  debate.  He  wrote  the  first 
pamphlet  on  the  nature  of  the  connexion  with  Great  Britain,  which  had  any 
pretension  to  accuracy  of  view  on  that  subject;  but  it  was  a  singular  one  : 
he  would  set  out  on  sound  principles,  pursue  them  logically,  till  he  found 
them  leading  to  the  precipice  which  we  had  to  leap  ;  start  back,  alarmed  ; 
then  resume  his  ground,  go  over  it  in  another  direction,  be  led  again  by  the 
correctness  of  his  reasoning,  to  the  same  place,  and  again  tack  about  and 
try  other  processes  to  reconcile  right  and  wrong;  but  left  his  reader  and 
himself,  bewddered  between  the  steady  index  of  the  compass  in  their  hand, 
and  the  phantasm  to  which  it  seemed  to  point.  Still  there  was  more  sound 
matter  in  this  pamphlet,  than  in  the  celebrated  Farmer's  Letters,  which  were 
really  but  an  ignis  fattens,  misleading  us  from  true  principle." 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  47 

that  expression  of  unclouded  intelligence  and  extensive 
reach,  which  seemed  to  denote  him  capable  of  anything, 
that  could  be  effected  by  the  power  of  the  human  mind. 
His  mind  itself,  was  of  a  very  fine  order.     It  was  clear, 
comprehensive,  sagacious  and  correct;  with  a  most  acute 
and  subtle  faculty  of  discrimination;  a  fertility  of  expe- 
dient which  could  never  be  exhausted;  a  dexterity  of 
address  which  never  lost  an  advantage  and  never  gave 
one;  and  a  capacity  for  continued  and  unremitting  appli- 
cation, which  was  perfectly  invincible.    As  a  lawyer  and 
a  stateman,  he  had  few  equals;  no  superiors.     For  par- 
liamentary management,  he  was  without  a  rival.    With 
all  these  advantages  of  person,  manners,  address  and  in- 
tellect, he  was  also  a  speaker  of  distinguished  eminence. 
He  had  that  silver  voice*  of  which  Cicero  makes  such 
frequent  and  honourable  mention — an  articulation  un- 
commonly distinct — a  perennial  stream  of  transparent, 
cool  and  sweet  elocution;  and  the  power  of  presenting  his 
arguments  with  great  simplicity,  and  striking  effect.  He 
was  always  graceful,  argumentative,  persuasive:  never  ve- 
hement, rapid,  or  abrupt.    He  could  instruct  and  delight ; 
but  he  had  no  pretensions  to  those  high  powers  which  are 
calculated  to  "  shake  the  human  soul."    George  Wythe, 
also,  a  member  of  the  House,  was  confessedly  among 
the  first  in  point  of  abilities.    There  is  a  story  circulated, 
as  upon  his  own  authority,  that  he  was  initiated  by  his 
mother,  in  the  Latin  classics.f    Be  this  as  it  may,  it  is 
certain  that  he  had  raised  upon  the  original  foundation, 
whencesoever  acquired,   a  superstructure  of  ancient 
literature  which  has  been  rarely  equalled  in  this  coun- 
try. He  was  perfectly  familiar  with  the  authors  of  Greece 

*  Vox  Argentea,  see  the  Brutus,  passim. 

f  I  heard  it  from  the  late  judge  Nelson,  his  relation 


48  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

and  Rome;  read  them  with  the  same  ease  and  quoted 
them  with  the  same  promptitude  that  he  could  the 
authors  in  his  native  tongue.  He  carried  his  love  of 
antiquity  rather  too  far;  for  he  frequently  subjected 
himself  to  the  charge  of  pedantry ;  and  his  admiration  of 
the  gigantic  writers  of  Queen  Elizabeth's  reign,  had 
unfortunately  betrayed  him  into  an  imitation  of  their 
quaintness.  Yet,  with  all  this  singularity  of  taste,  he 
was  a  man  of  great  capacity;  powerful  in  argument;  fre- 
quently pathetic;  and  elegantly  keen  and  sarcastic  in 
repartee.  He  was  long  the  rival  of  Mr.  Pendleton  at  the 
bar,  whom  he  equalled  as  a  common  lawyer,  and  greatly 
surpassed  as  a  civilian:  but  he  was  too  open  and  direct 
in  his  conduct,  and  possessed  too  little  management 
either  with  regard  to  his  own  temper  or  those  of  other 
men,  to  cope  with  so  cool  and  skilful  an  adversary. 
Though  a  full  match  for  Mr.  Pendleton  in  the  powers  of 
fair  and  solid  reasoning,  Mr.  Pendleton  could  whenever 
he  pleased,  and  would  whenever  it  was  necessary, 
tease  him  with  quibbles,  and  vex  him  with  sophistries, 
until  he  destroyed  the  composure  of  his  mind  and  rob- 
bed him  of  his  strength.  No  man  was  ever  more  entirely 
destitute  of  art  than  Mr.  Wythe.  He  knew  nothing,  even 
in  his  profession,  and  never  would  know  any  thing  of 
"  crooked  and  indirect  by-ways."  Whatever  he  had  to 
do,  was  to  be  done  openly,  avowedly  and  above  board. 
He  would  not,  even  at  the  bar,  have  accepted  of  success 
on  any  other  terms.  This  simplicity  and  integrity  of 
character,  although  it  sometimes  exposed  him  to  the 
arts  and  sneers  of  the  less  scrupulous,  placed  him  be- 
fore his  countrymen,  on  the  ground  which  Caesar  wished 
his  wife  to  occupy;  he  was  not  only  pure,  but  above  all 
suspicion.  The  unaffected  sanctity  of  his  principles, 
united  with  his  modesty  and  simple  elegance  of  manners, 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  49 

his  attic  wit,  his  stores  of  rare  knowledge,  his  capacity 
for  business,  and  the  real  power  of  his  intellect,  not 
only  raised  him  to  great  eminence  in  public,  but  ren- 
dered him  a  delightful  companion,  and  a  most  valuable 
friend. 

But  Richard  Henry  Lee  was  the  Cicero  of  the  house. 
His  face  itself,  was  on  the  Roman  model;  his  nose 
Cesarean;  the  port  and  carriage  of  his  head,  leaning 
persuasively  and  gracefully  forward;  and  the  whole 
contour  noble  and  fine.  Mr.  Lee  was,  by  far,  the  most 
elegant  scholar  in  the  house.  He  had  studied  the 
classics  in  the  true  spirit  of  criticism.  His  taste  had 
that  delicate  touch,  which  seized  with  intuitive  cer- 
tainty, every  beauty  of  an  author,  and  his  genius  that  na- 
tive affinity  which  combined  them  without  an  effort.  Into 
every  walk  of  literature  and  science,  he  had  carried  this 
mind  of  exquisite  selection,  and  brought  it  back  to  the 
business  of  life,  crowned  with  every  light  of  learning, 
and  decked  with  eveiy  wreath,  that  all  the  Muses,  and 
all  the  Graces,  could  entwine.  Nor  did  those  light  deco- 
rations constitute  the  whole  value  of  its  freight.  He  pos- 
sessed a  rich  store  of  historical  and  political  knowledge, 
with  an  activity  of  observation,  and  a  certainty  of  judg- 
ment, that  turned  that  knowledge  to  the  very  best  account. 
He  was  not  a  lawyer  by  profession;  but  he  understood 
thoroughly  the  constitution  both  of  the  mother  country 
and  of  her  colonies;  and  the  elements  also,  of  the  civil 
and  municipal  law.  Thus,  while  his  eloquence  was  free 
from  those  stiff  and  technical  restraints,  which  the  habits 
of  forensic  speaking  are  so  apt  to  generate,  he  had 
all  the  legal  learning  which  is  necessary  to  a  statesman. 
He  reasoned  well,  and  declaimed  freely  and  splendidly. 
The  note  of  his  voice  was  deeper  and  more  melodious  than 


50  SKETCHES    OF   THE 

that  of  Mr.  Pendleton.  It  was  the  canorous  voice*  of 
Cicero.  He  had  lost  the  use  of  one  of  his  hands,  which 
he  kept  constantly  covered  with  a  black  silk  bandage 
neatly  fitted  to  the  palm  of  his  hand,  but  leaving  his 
thumb  free;  yet,  notwithstanding  this  disadvantage,  his 
gesture  was  so  graceful  and  so  highly  finished,  that  it 
was  said  he  had  acquired  it  by  practising  before  a 
mirror.f  Such  was  his  promptitude,  that  he  required 
no  preparation  for  debate.  He  was  ready  for  any  sub- 
ject, as  soon  as  it  was  announced;  and  his  speech  was 
so  copious,  so  rich,  so  mellifluous,  set  off  with  such  be- 
witching cadence  of  voice,  and  such  captivating  grace  of 
action,  that,  while  you  listened  to  him,  you  desired  to 
hear  nothing  superior,  and  indeed  thought  him  per- 
fect. He  had  a  quick  sensibility  and  a  fervid  imagina- 
tion, which  Mr.  Pendleton  Wanted.  Hence  his  orations 
were  warmer  and  more  delightfully  interesting;  yet  still, 
to  him  those  keys  were  not  consigned,  which  could 
unlock  the  sources  either  of  the  strong  or  tender  pas- 
sions. His  defect  was,  that  he  was  too  smooth  and  too 
sweet.  His  style  bore  a  striking  resemblance  to  that  of 
Herodotus,  as  described  by  the  Roman  orator:  "he 
flowed  on,  like  a  quiet  and  placid  river,  without  a  rip- 
ple. "|  He  flowed,  too,  through  banks  covered  with  all 
the  fresh  verdure  and  variegated  bloom  of.  the  spring: 
but  his  course  was  too  subdued,  and  too  beautifully 
regular.  A  cataract,  like  that  of  Niagara,  crowned 
with  overhanging  rocks  and  mountains,  in  all  the  rude 
and  awful  grandeur  of  nature,  would  have  brought  him 
nearer  to  the  standard  of  Homer  and  of  Henry. 

*  Vox  canora,  see  the  Brutus,  passim. 

f  Edmund  Randolph. 

±  Sine  ullis  salebris,  quasi  sedatus  amnis,  Jlidt.    Orat.  XII.  39. 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  51 

These  were  some  of  the  stars  of  first  magnitude  that 
shone  in  the  house  of  burgesses  in  the  year  1765. 
There  was,  yet,  a  cluster  of  minor  luminaries,  which  it 
were  endless  to  delineate,  but  whose  blended  rays  con- 
tributed to  form  that  uncommon  galaxy,  in  which  the 
plebeian  Henry  was  now  called  upon  to  take  his  place. 
What  had  he  to  enable  him  to  cope  with  all  this  lustre  of 
talents  and  erudition?  Very  little  more  than  the  native 
strength  of  his  character;  a  constancy  of  soul,  which  no 
array  of  power  could  shake;  a  genius  that  designed  with 
all  the  boldness  of  Angelo,  and  an  imagination  that  co- 
loured with  all  the  felicity  of  Titian. 

It  has  been  already  stated  that  Mr.  Henry  was  elected 
with  express  reference  to  an  opposition  to  the  stamp 
act.  It  was  not,  however,  expected  by  his  constituents, 
or  meditated  by  himself,  that  he  should  lead  the  opposi- 
tion. The  addresses  of  the  preceding  year,  made  to  the 
king,  lords,  and  commons,  in  which  so  strong  a  truth 
had  been  stated,  as  that  the  stamp  act,  if  persisted  in, 
would  reduce  the  colony  to  a  state  of  slavery,  founded 
a  hope,  that  those  who  had  commenced  the  opposition 
by  remonstrance,  would  continue  to  give  it  the  eclat  of 
their  high  names,  by  resistance  of  a  bolder  character,  if 
bolder  should  be  necessary.  Mr.  Henry  waited,  there- 
fore, to  file  in  under  the  first  champion  that  should  raise 
the  banner  of  colonial  liberty.  In  the  mean  time  an- 
other subject,  unexpectedly,  occurred  to  call  him  up, 
and  it  was  on  this  other,  that  he  made  his  debut  in  the 
house. 

The  incident  has  been  stated  to  me  in  the  following 
terms,  by  a  gentleman  who  heard  the  debate  *    "  The 

*  Mr.  Jefferson, 


52  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

gentlemen  of  this  country  had,  at  that  time,  become 
deeply  involved  in  that  state  of  indebtment,  which  has 
since  ended  in  so  general  a  crush  of  their  fortunes. 
Mr.  Robinson,  the  speaker,  was  also  the  treasurer,  an 
officer  always  chosen  by  the  assembly.     He  was  an  ex- 
cellent man,  liberal,  friendly,  and  rich.     He  had  been 
drawn  in  to  lend  on  his  own  account,  great  sums  of 
money  to  persons  of  this  description,  and  especially 
those  who  were  of  the  assembly.     He  used  freely  for 
this  purpose  the  public  money,  confiding  for  its  replace- 
ment in  his  own  means,  and  the  securities  he  had  taken 
on  those  loans.     About  this  time,  however,  he  became 
sensible  that  his  deficit  to  the  public  was  become  so 
enormous,  as  that  a  discovery  must  soon  take  place,  for 
as  yet  the  public  had  no  suspicion  of  it.     He  devised, 
therefore,  with  his  friends  in  the  assembly,  a  plan  for  a 
public  loan  office,  to  a  certain  amount,  from  which  mo- 
nies might  be  lent  on  public  account,  and  on  good  land- 
•ed  security,  to  individuals.     I  find,  in  Royle's  Virginia 
Gazette  of  the  17th  of  May,  1765,  this  proposition  for 
a  loan  office  presented,  its  advantages  detailed,  and  the 
plan  explained.     It  seems  to  have  been  done  by  a  bor- 
rowing member,  from  the  feeling  with  which  the  mo- 
tives are  expressed,  and  to  have  been  preparatory  to  the 
intended  motion.   Between  the  17th  and  30th,  (the  lat- 
ter being  the  date  of  Mr.  Henry's  resolutions  on  the 
stamp  act,)  the  motion  for  a  loan  office  was  accordingly 
brought  forward  in  the  house  of  burgesses;  and  had  it 
succeeded,  the  debts  due  to  Robinson  on  these  loans, 
would  have  been  transferred  to  the  public,  and  his  deficit 
thus  completely  covered.     This  state  of  things,  how- 
ever, was  not  yet  known:  but  Mr.  Henry  attacked  the 
scheme  on  other  general  grounds,  in  that  style  of  bold, 
grand,  and  overwhelming  eloquence,  for  which  he  be- 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  53 

came  so  justly  celebrated  afterward.  I  had  been  inti- 
mate with  him  from  the  year  1759-60,  and  felt  an  inter- 
est in  what  concerned  him;  and  I  can  never  forget  a 
particular  exclamation  of  his  in  the  debate,  which 
electrified  his  hearers.  It  had  been  urged,  that,  from 
certain  unhappy  circumstances  of  the  colony,  men  of 
substantial  property  had  contracted  debts,  which,  if  ex- 
acted suddenly,  must  ruin  them  and  their  families,  but 
with  a  little  indulgence  of  time,  might  be  paid  with  ease. 
'  What,  sir/  exclaimed  Mr.  Henry,  in  animadverting 
on  this,  i  is  it  proposed  then,  to  reclaim  the  spendthrift 
from  his  dissipation  and  extravagance,  by  filling  his  poc- 
kets with  money?'  These  expressions  are  indelibly 
impressed  on  my  memory.  He  laid  open  with  so  much 
energy  the  spirit  of  favouritism,  on  which  the  proposi- 
tion was  founded,  and  the  abuses  to  which  it  would 
lead,  that  it  was  crushed  in  its  birth.  He  carried  with 
him  all  the  members  of  the  upper  counties,  and  left  a  mi- 
nority composed  merely  of  the  aristocracy  of  the  country. 
From  this  time  his  popularity  swelled  apace;  and  Mr. 
Robinson  dying  the  year  afterwards,  his  deficit  was 
brought  to  light,  and  discovered  the  true  object  of  the 
proposition.^* 

*  In  reply  to  this  communication,  I  stated  my  surprise  that  no  evidence  of 
this  motion  was  to  be  found  on  the  journals  of  the  day,  and  begged  my  cor- 
respondent to  explain  it,  which  he  does  very  satisfactorily  in  the  following 
terms.  "  Abortive  motions  are  not  always  entered  on  the  journals,  or  rather 
they  are  rarely  entered.  It  is  the  modern  introduction  of  yeas  and  nays 
which  has  given  the  means  of  placing  a  rejected  motion  on  the  journals :  and 
it  is  likely  that  the  speaker,  who,  as  treasurer,  was  to  be  the  loan  officer,  and 
had  the  direction  of  the  journals,  would  choose  to  omit  an  entry  of  the  mo- 
tion in  this  case.  This  accounts  sufficiently  for  the  absence  of  any  trace  of 
the  motion  on  the  journals.  There  was  no  suspicion  then,  (so  far  at  least  as 
I  knew,)  that  Mr.  Robinson  had  used  the  public  money  in  private  loans  to  his 
friends,  and  that  the  secret  object  of  this  scheme  was  to  transfer  those 
debtors  to  the  public,  and  thus  clear  his  accounts.  I  have  diligently  exa- 
mined the  names  of  the  members  on  the  journals  of  1764,  to  see  if  any  were 
still  living,  to  whose  memory  we  might  recur  on  this  subject ;  but  I  find  not 


54  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

The  exclamation  above  quoted  by  my  correspondent 
as  having  electrified  Mr.  Henry's  hearers,  is  a  striking 
specimen  of  one  of  his  great  excellences  in  speaking; 
which  was,  the  power  of  condensing  the  substance  of  a 
long  argument,  into  one  short  pithy  question.  The' 
hearer  was  surprised,  in  finding  himself  brought  so 
suddenly  and  so  clearly,  to  a  just  conclusion.  He  could 
scarcely  conceive  how  it  was  effected;  and  could  not 
fail  to  regard,  with  high  admiration,  the  power  of  that 
intellect,  which  could  come  at  its  ends  by  so  short  a 
course,  and  work  out  its  purposes  with  the  quickness 
and  certainty  of  magic. 

The  aristocracy  were  startled  at  such  a  phenomenon 
from  the  plebeian  ranks.  They  could  not  be  otherwise 
than  indignant  at  the  presumption  of  an  obscure  and 
unpolished  rustic,  who,  without  asking  the  support  or 
countenance  of  any  patron  among  themselves,  stood 
upon  his  own  ground,  and  bearded  them  even  in  their 
strong  hold.  That  this  rustic  should  have  been  able 
too,  by  his  single  strength,  to  baffle  their  whole  phalanx 
and  put  it  to  rout,  was  a  mortification  too  humiliating 
to  be  easily  borne.  They  affected  to  ridicule  his  vicious 
and  depraved  pronunciation,  the  homespun  coarseness 
of  his  language,  and  his  hypocritical  canting  in  relation 
to  his  humility  and  ignorance.  But  they  could  not  help 
admiring  and  envying  his  wonderful  gift;  that  thorough 
knowledge  of  the  human  heart  which  he  displayed; 
that  power  of  throwing  his  reasoning  into  short  and 
clear  aphorisms;  which,  desultory  as  they  were,  supplied 
in  a  great  degree,  the  place  of  method  and  logic;  that 
imagination  so  copious,  poetic,  and  sublime;  the  irresisti- 

a  single  one  now  remaining  in  life."  This  debate  must  have  been  in  1765, 
instead  of  1764.  The  only  surviving  member  of  that  year  is  Paul  Carring- 
ton,  sen.  esq.  who  took  his  seat  in  the  house  after  the  debate  in  question. 


LIFE    OF  HENRY.  65 

ble  power  with  which  he  caused  every  passion  to  rise 
at  his  bidding  ;  and  all  the  rugged  might  and  majesty 
of  his  eloquence.  From  this  moment,  he  had  no  friends 
on  the  aristocratic  side  of  the  house.  They  looked 
upon  him  with  envy  and  with  terror.  They  were  forc- 
ed at  length  to  praise  his  genius;  but  that  praise  was 
wrung  from  them,  with  painful  reluctance.  They 
would  have  denied  it,  if  they  could.  They  would  have 
overshadowed  it;  and  did  at  first  try  to  overshadow  it, 
by  magnifying  his  defects;  but  it  would  have  been  as 
easy  for  them  to  have  eclipsed  the  splendour  of  the  sun, 
by  pointing  to  his  spots. 

If,  however,  he  had  lost  one  side  of  the  house  by  his 
undaunted  manner  of  blowing  up  this  aristocratic  pro- 
ject, he  had  made  the  other  side  his  fast  friends.  They 
had  listened  with  admiration,  unmixed  with  envy.  Their 
souls  had  been  struck  with  amazement  and  rapture, 
and  thrilled  with  unspeakable  sensations  which  they 
had  never  felt  before.  The  man  too,  who  had  pro- 
duced these  effects,  was  one  of  themselves.  This  was 
balm  to  them;  for  there  is  a  wide  difference  between 
that  distant  admiration,  which  we  pay  as  a  tax,  due  to 
long-standing  merit,  in  superior  rank,  and  that  throb- 
bing applause  which  rushes  spontaneously  and  warm 
from  the  heart,  towards  a  new  man  and  an  equal. 
There  is  always  something  of  latent  repining,  approach- 
ing to  resentment,  mingled  with  that  respect  which  is 
exacted  from  us  by  rank;  and  we  feel  a  secret  gratifi- 
cation in  seeing  it  humbled.  In  the  same  proportion, 
we  love  the  man  who  has  given  us  this  gratification,  and 
avenged  as  it  were,  our  own  past  indignities.  Such 
was  precisely  the  state  of  feeling  which  Mr.  Henry  pro- 
duced, on  the  present  occasion.  The  lower  ranks  of 
the  house  beheld  and  heard  him  with  gratitude  and 


56  SKETCHES    OF   THE 

veneration.  They  regarded  him  as  a  sturdy  and  wide 
spreading  oak,  beneath  whose  cool  and  refreshing  shade 
they  might  take  refuge  from  those  beams  of  aristocracy, 
that  had  played  upon  them  so  long,  with  rather  an  un- 
pleasant heat. 

After  this  victorious  sally  upon  their  party,  the  former 
leaders  of  the  house,  were  not  very  well  disposed  to 
look  with  a  favourable  eye,  on  any  proposition  which  he 
should  make.  They  had  less  idea  of  contributing  to 
foster  the  popularity  and  pamper  the  power  of  a  man, 
who  seemed  born  to  be  their  scourge,  and  to  drag  down 
their  ancient  honours  to  the  dust.  It  was  in  this  un- 
propitious  state  of  things,  after  having  waited  in  vain 
for  some  step  to  be  taken  on  the  other  side  of  the  house, 
and  when  the  session  was  within  three  days  of  its  expect- 
ed close,  that  Mr.  Henry  introduced  his  celebrated 
resolutions  on  the  stamp  act. 

I  will  not  withhold  from  the  reader  a  note  of  this 
transaction  from  the  pen  of  Mr.  Henry  himself.  It  is 
a  curiosity,  and  highly  worthy  of  preservation.  After  his 
death,  there  was  found  among  his  papers  one  sealed, 
and  thus  endorsed:  "  Inclosed  are  the  resolutions  of  the 
Virginia  assembly  in  1765,  concerning  the  stamp  act. 
Let  my  executors  open  this  paper."  Within  was  found 
the  following  copy  of  the  resolutions,  in  IVIr.  Henry's 
hand-writing. 

Resolved,  That  the  first  adventurers  and  settlers  of 
this,  his  majesty's  colony  and  dominion,  brought  with 
them,  and  transmitted  to  their  posterity,  and  all  other 
his  majesty's  subjects,  since  inhabiting  in  this,  his  ma- 
jesty's said  colony,  all  the  privileges,  franchises,  and  im- 
munities, that  have  at  any  time  been  held,  enjoyed,  and 
possessed,  by  the  people  of  Great  Britain. 

Resolved,  That  by  two  royal  charters,  granted  by 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  51 

king  James  the  first,  the  colonists,  aforesaid,  are  declared 
entitled  to  all  the  privileges,  liberties,  and  immunities, 
of  denizens  and  natural  born  subjects,  to  all  intents 
and  purposes,  as  if  they  had  been  abiding  and  born 
within  the  realm  of  England. 

"  Resolved,  That  the  taxation  of  the  people  by  them- 
selves, or  by  persons  chosen  by  themselves  to  represent 
them,  who  can  only  know  what  taxes  the  people  are 
able  to  bear,  and  the  easiest  mode  of  raising  them, 
and  are  equally  affected  by  such  taxes  themselves,  is 
the  distinguishing  characteristic  of  British  freedom,  and 
without  which  the  ancient  constitution  cannot  subsist. 

"  Resolved,  That  his  majesty's  liege  people  of  this 
most  ancient  colony,  have  uninterruptedly  enjoyed  the 
right  of  being  thus  governed  by  their  own  assembly  in 
the  article  of  their  taxes  and  internal  police,  and  that  the 
same  hath  never  been  forfeited,  or  any  other  way  given 
up,  but  hath  been  constantly  recognized  by  the  king  and 
people  of  Great  Britain. 

"  Resolved,  therefore,  That  the  general  assembly  of 
this  colony  have  the  sole  right  and  power  to  lay  taxes 
and  impositions  upon  the  inhabitants  of  this  colony;  and 
that  every  attempt  to  vest  such  power  in  any  person  or 
persons  whatsoever,  other  than  the  general  assembly 
aforesaid,  has  a  manifest  tendency  to  destroy  British  as 
well  as  American  freedom/' 

On  the  back  of  the  paper  containing  those  resolu- 
tions, is  the  following  endorsement,  which  is  also  in  the 
handwriting  of  Mr.  Henry  himself.  "  The  within  re- 
solutions passed  the  house  of  burgesses  in  May,  1765. 
They  formed  the  first  opposition  to  the  stamp  act,  and 
the  scheme  of  taxing  America  by  the  British  parliament. 
All  the  colonies,  either  through  fear,  or  want  of  oppor- 
tunity to  form  an  opposition,  or  from  influence  of  some 

H 


58  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

kind  or  other,  had  remained  silent.  I  had  been  for  the 
first  time  elected  a  burgess,  a  few  days  before,  was 
young,  inexperienced,  unacquainted  with  the  forms  of 
the  house,  and  the  members  that  composed  it.  Finding 
the  men  of  weight  averse  to  opposition,  and  the  com- 
mencement of  the  tax  at  hand,  and  that  no  person  was 
likely  to  step  forth,  I  determined  to  venture,  and  alone, 
unadvised,  and  unassisted,  on  a  blank  leaf  of  an  old  law 
book*  wrote  the  within.  Upon  offering  them  to  the 
house,  violent  debates  ensued.  Many  threats  were  ut- 
tered, and  much  abuse  cast  on  me,  by  the  party  for  sub- 
mission, ^fter  a  long  and  warm  contest,  the  resolutions 
passed  by  a  very  small  majority,  perhaps  of  one  or  two 
only.  The  alarm  spread  throughout  America  with  asto- 
nishing quickness,  and  the  ministerial  party  were  over- 
whelmed. The  great  point  of  resistance  to  British  tax- 
ation was  universally  established  in  the  colonies.  This 
brought  on  the  war,  which  finally  separated  the  two 
countries,  and  gave  independence  to  ours.  Whether 
this  will  prove  a  blessing  or  a  curse,  will  depend  upon 
the  use  our  people  make  of  the  blessings  which  a  gra- 
cious God  hath  bestowed  on  us.  If  they  are  wise,  they 
will  be  great  and  happy.  If  they  are  of  a  contrary 
character,  they  will  be  miserable. — Righteousness  alone 
can  exalt  them  as  a  nation. 

"  Reader!  whoever  thou  art,  remember  this;  and  in 
thy  sphere,  practise  virtue  thyself,  and  encourage  it  in 
others. — P.  Henry." 

Such  is  the  short,  plain  and  modest  account  which 
Mr.  Henry  has  left  of  this  transaction.  But  other  in- 
teresting particulars  have  been  handed  down  by  tradi- 
tion, and  live  still  in  the  recollection  of  one,  at  least,  now 

*  Judge  Tyler  says,  "  an  old  Coke  upon  Littleton." 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  59 

in  life,  as  the  reader  will  presently  see  by  his  own 
statement. 

The  resolutions  having  been  prepared  in  the  man- 
ner which  has  been  mentioned,  were  shown  by  Mr. 
Henry  to  two  members  only,  before  they  were  offered 
to  the  house;  these  were,  John  Fleming,  a  most  respecta- 
ble member  for  the  county  of  Cumberland,  and  George 
Johnston,  for  that  of  Fairfax.* 

The  reader  will  remark  that  the  first  four  resolutions, 
as  left  by  Mr.  Henry,  do  little  more  than  re-affirm  the 
principles  advanced  in  the  address,  memorial  and  re- 
monstrance of  the  preceding  year;  that  is,  they  deny  the 
right  assumed  by  the  British  parliament,  and  assert  the 
exclusive  right  of  the  colony  to  tax  itself.  There  is  an 
important  difference,  however,  between  those  state 
papers  and  the  resolutions,  in  the  point  of  time  and  the 
circumstances  under  which  they  were  brought  forward, 
for  the  address  and  other  state  papers  were  prepared 
before  the  stamp  act  had  passed;  they  do  nothing  more, 
therefore,  than  call  in  question,  by  a  course  of  respect- 
ful and  submissive  reasoning,  the  propriety  of  exercising 
the  right,  before  it  had  been  exercised;  and  they  are, 
moreover,  addressed  to  the  legislature  of  Great  Britain, 
by  the  way  of  prevention,  and  in  a  strain  of  decent  re- 


*  Judge  Winston,  on  the  authority  of  Mr.  Henry  himself.  The  report  of 
the  day,  that  Mr.  Johnston  drew  the  resolutions,  is  certainly  unfounded.  Mr. 
Johnston,  now  known  only  from  the  circumstance  of  his  having  seconded 
Mr.  Henry's  resolutions,  is  one  of  those  many  friends  of  liberty,  who  are 
sliding  fast  from  the  recollection  of  their  country,  and  who  deserve  to  be 
rescued  from  oblivion,  by  a  more  particular  notice,  than  it  is  in  my  power  to 
bestow  upon  them.  Of  Mr.  Johnston,  I  can  learn  only,  that  he  was  a  lawyer 
in  the  Northern  Neck,  highly  respectable  in  his  profession  ;  a  scholar,  distin- 
guished for  vigour  of  intellect,  cogency  of  argument,  firmness  of  character, 
love  of  order,  and  devotion  to  the  cause  of  rational  liberty — in  short,  exactly 
calculated  by  his  love  of  the  cause,  and  the  broad  and  solid  basis  of  his  under- 
standing,  to  uphold  the  magnificent  structure  of  Henry's  eloquence. 


60  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

monstrance  and  argument.  But  at  the  time  when  Mr. 
Hemy  offered  his  resolutions,  the  stamp  act  had  passed; 
and  the  resolutions  were  intended  for  the  people  of  the 
colonies.  It  will,  also,  be  observed  that  the  fifth  resolu- 
tion, as  given  by  Mr.  Henry,  contains  the  bold  assertion, 
that  every  attempt  to  vest  the  power  of  taxation  over  the 
colonies,  in  any  person  or  persons  whatsoever,  other 
than  the  General  Assembly,  had  a  manifest  tendency  to 
destroy  British,  as  well  as  American  freedom;  which 
was  asserting  in  effect,  that  the  act  which  had  passed, 
was  an  encroachment  on  the  rights  and  liberties  of  the 
people,  and  amounted  to  a  direct  charge  of  tyranny 
and  despotism,  against  the  British  king,  lords  and 
commons. 

It  is  not  wonderful  that  even  the  friends  of  colonial 
rights,  who  knew  the  feeble  and  defenceless  situation 
of  this  country,  should  be  startled,  at  a  step  so  bold  and 
daring.  That  effect  was  produced;  and  the  resolutions 
were  resisted  not  only  by  the  aristocracy  of  the  house, 
but  by  many  of  those  who  were  afterwards,  distin- 
guished among  the  brightest  champions  of  American 
liberty. 

The  following  is  Mr.  Jefferson's  account  of  this 
transaction. 

"  Mr.  Henry  moved  and  Mr.  Johnston  seconded  these 
resolutions  successively.  They  were  opposed  by  Messrs. 
Randolph,  Bland,  Pendleton,  Wythe,  and  all  the  old 
members  whose  influence  in  the  house  had,  till  then, 
been  unbroken.  They  did  it,  not  from  any  question  of 
our  rights,  but  on  the  ground  that  the  same  sentiments 
had  been,  at  their  preceding  session,  expressed  in  a 
more  conciliatory  form,  to  which  the  answers  were  not 
yet  received.  But  torrents  of  sublime  eloquence  from 
Henry,  backed  by  the  solid  reasoning  of  Johnston,  pre*- 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  61 

vailed.  The  last,  however,  and  strongest  resolution  was 
carried  but  by  a  single  vote.  The  debate  on  it  was 
most  bloody.  I  was  then  but  a  student,  and  stood  at  the 
door  of  communication  between  the  house  and  the 
lobby  (for  as  yet  there  was  no  gallery,)  during  the  whole 
debate  and  vote;  and  I  well  remember  that,  after  the 
numbers  on  the  division  were  told  and  declared  from 
the  chair,  Peyton  Randolph  (the  attorney  general)  came 
out  at  the  door  where  I  was  standing,  and  said  as  he  en- 
tered the  lobby,  '  by  God  I  would  have  given  500  guineas 
for  a  single  vote:5  for  one  vote  would  have  divided  the 
house,  and  Robinson  was  in  the  chair,  who  he  knew 
would  have  negatived  the  resolution.  Mr.  Henry  left 
town  that  evening;  and  the  next  morning  before  the 
meeting  of  the  house,  col.  Peter  Randolph,  then  of 
the  council,  came  to  the  hall  of  burgesses,  and  sat  at  the 
clerk's  table  till  the  house  bell  rang,  thumbing  over  the 
volumes  of  journals,  to  find  a  precedent  of  expunging  a 
vote  of  the  house,  which  he  said,  had  taken  place  while 
he  was  a  member  or  clerk  of  the  house,  I  do  not  recol- 
lect which.  I  stood  by  him  at  the  end  of  the  table,  a 
considerable  part  of  the  time,  looking  on,  as  he  turned 
over  the  leaves ;  but  I  do  not  recollect  whether  he  found 
the  erasure.  In  the  mean  time,  some  of  the  timid  mem- 
bers who  had  voted  for  the  strongest  resolution,  had 
become  alarmed;  and  as  soon  as  the  house  met,  a  mo- 
tion was  made  and  carried  to  expunge  it  from  the  jour- 
nals. There  being  at  that  day  but  one  printer,  and  he 
entirely  under  controul  of  the  governor,  I  do  not  know 
that  this  resolution  ever  appeared  in  print.  I  write  this 
from  memory:  but  the  impression  made  on  me  at  the 
time  was  such  as  to  fix  the  facts  indelibly  in  my  mind. 
I  suppose  the  original  journal  was  among  those  destroy- 
ed bf-  the  British,  or  its  obliterated  face  might  be  ap- 


62  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

pealed  to.  And  here  I  will  state  that  Burk's  statement 
of  Mr.  Henrys  consenting  to  withdraw  two  resolutions, 
by  way  of  compromise  with  his  opponents,  is  entirely 
erroneous." 

The  manuscript  journal  of  the  day  is  not  to  be  found; 
whether  it  was  suppressed,  or  casually  lost,  must  remain 
a  matter  of  uncertainty;  it  disappeared  however,  shortly 
after  the  session,*  and  therefore,  could  not  have  been 
among  the  documents  destroyed  by  the  British  dur- 
ing the  revolutionary  war,  as  conjectured  by  Mr.  Jef- 
ferson. 

In  the  interesting  fact  of  the  erasure  of  the  fifth  reso- 
lution, Mr.  Jefferson  is  supported  by  the  distinct  recol- 
lection of  Mr.  Paul  Carrington,  late  a  judge  of  the 
court  of  appeals  of  Virginia,  and  the  only  surviving 
member,  it  is  believed,  of  the  house  of  burgesses  of 
1765.  The  statement,  is  also  confirmed,  if  indeed  fur- 
ther confirmation  were  necessary,  by  the  circumstance 
that  instead  of  the  five  resolutions,  so  solemnly  recorded 
by  Mr.  Henry,  as  having  passed  the  house,  the  journal 
of  the  day,  exhibits  only  the  following  foiir: 

Resolved,  That  the  first  adventurers  and  settlers  of 
this  his  majesty's  colony  and  dominion  of  Virginia, 
brought  with  them,  and  transmitted  to  their  posterity, 
and  all  others  his  majesty's  subjects,  since  inhabit- 
ing in  this  his  majesty's  said  colony,  all  the  liberties, 
privileges,  franchises,  and  immunities,  that  have,  at 
any  time,  been  held,  enjoyed,  and  possessed,  by  the  peo- 
ple of  Great  Britain. 

Resolved,  That  by  two  royal  charters,  granted  by  king 
James  the  I.  the  colonists  aforesaid,  are  declared  entitled 

*  "  The  manuscript  journal  was  missing  ten  years  before  hostilities  be- 
tween the  two  countries ;  therefore  could  not  have  been  destroyed,  as  you 
supposed  probable." — Patti  Cabrixgtos,  senr. 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  63 

to  all  liberties;,  privileges,  and  immunities  of  denizens 
and  natural  subjects  to  all  intents  and  purposes,  as  if 
they  had  been  abiding  and  born  within  the  realm  of 
England. 

Resolved,  That  the  taxation  of  the  people,  by  them- 
selves, or  by  persons  chosen  by  themselves  to  represent 
them,  who  can  only  know  what  taxes  the  people  are 
able  to  bear,  or  the  easiest  method  of  raising  them;  and 
must,  themselves,  be  affected  by  every  tax  laid  on  the 
people,  is  the  only  security  against  a  burthensome  taxa- 
tion, and  the  distinguishing  characteristic  of  British 
freedom,  without  which  the  ancient  constitution  cannot 
exist. 

Resolved,  That  his  majesty's  liege  people  of  this  his 
most  ancient  and  loyal  colony  have,  without  interrup- 
tion, enjoyed  the  inestimable  right  of  being  governed 
by  such  laws  respecting  their  internal  polity  and  taxa- 
tion, as  are  derived  from  their  own  consent,  with  the 
approbation  of  their  sovereign,  or  his  substitute;  and 
that  the  same  hath  never  been  forfeited  or  yielded  up, 
but  hath  been  constantly  recognized  by  the  kings  and 
people  of  Cheat  Britain? 


# 


-  *  Such  are  the  resolutions,  as  they  were  amended  and  passed  by  the 
house,  with  the  exception  of  that  which  was  rescinded  on  the  next  day. 
Journals  of  1765,  page  150.  Several  historical  mistakes  have  been  commit- 
ted in  relation  to  these  resolutions.  Judge  Marshall,  in  his  life  of  Washing- 
ton, (2d  vol.  note  4th,  of  the  appendix)  gives  an  erroneous  copy  of  them, 
from  the  book  called  Prior  Documents  ;  in  this,  he  is  set  right  by  the  jour- 
nals ;  he  represents  six  as  having  been  offered,  and  two  rejected ;  his 
authority  for  this,  again,  is  the  Prior  Documents;  but  he  is  contradicted  by 
Mr.  Henry  himself,  who  represents  five  only  as  having  been  offered  and 
past,  and  Mr.  Henry's  written  statement  accords  with  the  clear  and  strong 
recollection  both  of  Mr.  Jefferson,  and  Mr.  Carrington.  Mr.  Burk  gives  the 
same  erroneous  copy  with  judge  Marshall,  and  adds  to  them  several  mis- 
takes of  his  own :  he  says  the  resolutions  passed,  by  a  large  majority,  forty 
only  having  voted  ag'ainst  them.  Mr.  Burk  did  not  know  the  number  of  the 
members,  or  he  would  have  known  that  a  vote  of  forty,  in  the  negative, 
would  not  have  left  a  large  majority  in  favour  of  the  resolutions.    But  we 


64  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

"  By  these  resolutions,"  says  Mr.  Jefferson,  "  and 
his  manner  of  supporting  them,  Mr.  Henry  took  the 
lead  out  of  the  hands  of  those  who  had,  theretofore, 
guided  the  proceedings  of  the  house;  that  is  to  say,  of 
Pendleton,  Wythe,  Bland,  Randolph."  It  was,  indeed, 
the  measure  which  raised  him  to  the  zenith  of  his  glory. 
He  had  never  before  had  a  subject  which  entirely 
matched  his  genius,  and  was  capable  of  drawing  out  all 
the  powers  of  his  mind.  It  was  remarked  of  him, 
throughout  his  life,  that  his  talents  never  failed  to  rise 
with  the  occasion,  and  in  proportion  with  the  resistance 
which  he  had  to  encounter.  The  nicety  of  the  vote  on 
his  last  resolution,  proves  that  this  was  not  a  time  to  hold 
in  reserve,  any  part  of  his  forces.  It  was,  indeed,  an 
alpine  passage,  under  circumstances  even  more  unpro- 
pitious  than  those  of  Hanibal;  for  he  had  not  only  to 
fight,  hand  to  hand,  the  powerful  party  who  were  already 
in  possession  of  the  heights,  but  at  the  same  instant, 

have  the  authority  of  Mr.  Henry  himself,  (as  we  have  seen)  of  Mr.  Jefferson, 
and  of  Mr.  Carrington,  for  saying  that  the  resolutions  were  carried  by  a 
majority  of  one  only,-  on  what  authority  Mr.  Burk  speaks,  we  are  not  inform- 
ed. His  whole  account  of  Mr.  Henry's  proposal  on  the  next  day,  to  secede, 
and  of  his  finally  giving  up  two  resolutions,  for  the  sake  of  unanimity,  is  con- 
tradicted again  by  Mr.  Henry,  Mr.  Jefferson,  and  Mr.  Carrington  ;  there  is 
no  such  statement  in  the  papers  of  the  day,  and  the  author  does  not  conde- 
scend to  give  us  his  authority.  Mr.  Burk's  skeleton  of  Mr.  Henry's  speech, 
on  that  occasion,  is  believed  to  be  equally  apocryphal ;  the  author  of  these 
sketcheshas  not  been  able  to  procure  a  single  authentic  trace  of  that  speech, 
except  the  anecdote  presently  given  in  the  text.  Mr.  Burk  concludes  his 
account  of  this  affair,  thus  :  "  Struck  with  the  alarming  tendency  of  these 
proceedings,  the  governor  suddenly  dissolved  the  assembly,  &c."  vol.  3d, 
page  310.  In  opposition  to  this  statement,  we  are  told  by  Mr.  Henry  himself, 
that  when  he  offered  his  resolutions,  the  session  was  near  its  regular  close  ; 
and  the  journals  prove  the  fact  to  have  been  so.  Mr.  Henry  left  town  for 
home,  on  the  evening  of  the  day  on  which  his  resolutions  were  adopted;  it 
was  on  the  next  day  (consequently  in  his  absence,)  that  the  motion  to 
rescind  was  made;  and  the  printed  journals  show  that  day  and  the  day  follow- 
ing, to  have  been  occupied  with  the  usual  business  which  closes  a  legislative 
session. 


LIFE   OF  HENRY.  65 

to  cheer  and  animate  the  timid  band  of  followers,  that 
were  trembling,  fainting,  and  drawing  back,  below 
him.  It  was  an  occasion  that  called  upon  him  to  put 
forth  all  his  strength,  and  he  did  put  it  forth,  in  such  a 
manner,  as  man  never  did  before.  The  cords  of  argu- 
ment, with  which  his  adversaries  frequently  flattered 
themselves  they  had  bound  him  fast,  became  pack- 
threads in  his  hands.  He  burst  them,  with  as  much 
ease,  as  the  unshorn  Sampson  did  the  bands  of  the 
Philistines.  He  seized  the  pillars  of  the  temple,  shook 
them  terribly,  and  seemed  to  threaten  his  opponents 
with  ruin.  It  was  an  incessant  storm  of  lightning  and 
thunder,  which  struck  them  aghast.  The  faint-hearted 
gathered  courage  from  his  countenance,  and  cowards 
became  heroes,  while  they  gazed  upon  his  exploits. 

It  was  in  the  midst  of  this  magnificent  debate,  while 
he  was  descanting  on  the  tyranny  of  the  obnoxious  act, 
that  he  exclaimed,  in  a  voice  of  thunder,  and  with  the 
look  of  a  god,  "  Caesar  had  his  Brutus — Charles  the 
first,  his  Cromwell — and  George  the  third — ('  Trea- 
son/ cried  the  speaker — c  treason,  treason/  echoed 
from  every  part  of  the  house. — It  was  one  of  those  try- 
ing moments  which  is  decisive  of  character. — Henry 
faultered  not  for  an  instant;  but  rising  to  a  loftier  atti- 
tude, and  fixing  on  the  speaker  an  eye  of  the  most  de- 
termined fire,  he  finished  his  sentence  with  the  firmest 
emphasis)  may  profit  by  their  example.  If  this  be  trea- 
son, make  the  most  of  it/7* 

*  I  had  frequently  heard  the  above  anecdote  of  the  cry  of  treason,  but 
with  such  variations  of  the  concluding'  words,  that  I  began  to  doubt  whether 
the  whole  might  not  be  fiction.  With  a  view  to  ascertain  the  truth,  there- 
fore, I  submitted  it  to  Mr.  Jefferson,  as  it  had  been  given  to  me  by  judge  Ty- 
ler, and  this  is  liis  answer.  "  I  well  remember  the  cry  of  treason,  the  pause 
of  Mr.  Henry  at  the  name  of  George  the  III.  and  the  presence  of  mind 
with  which  he  closed  his  sentence,  and  baffled  the  chai'ge  vociferated."  The 
incident/therefore,  becomes  authentic  history. 


66  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

This  was  the  only  expression  of  defiance  which 
escaped  him  during  the  debate.  He  was,  throughout 
life,  one  of  the  most  perfectly  and  uniformly  decorous 
speakers,  that  ever  took  the  floor  of  the  house.  He  was 
respectful  even  to  humility;  and  the  provocation  must 
be  gross  indeed,  which  would  induce  him  to  notice  it. 
Yet  when  he  did  notice  it,  better  were  it  for  the  man 
never  to  have  been  born,  than  to  fall  into  the  hands  of 
such  an  adversary.  One  lash  from  his  scourge  was  in- 
famy for  life;  his  look  of  anger  or  contempt,  was  almost 
death. 

After  this  debate,  there  was  no  longer  a  question, 
among  the  body  of  the  people,  as  to  Mr.  Henry's  being 
the  first  statesman  and  orator  in  Virginia.  Those,  in- 
deed, whose  ranks  he  had  scattered,  and  whom  he  had 
thrown  into  the  shade,  still  tried  to  brand  him  with  the 
names  of  declaimer  and  demagogue.  But  this  was  ob- 
viously the  effect  of  envy  and  mortified  pride.  A  mere 
declaimer  and  demagogue,  could  never  have  gained, 
much  less  have  kept  for  more  than  thirty  years,  that 
ground  which  Mr.  Henry  held;  with  a  people,  too,  so 
cool,  judicious,  firm,  and  virtuous,  as  those  who  achieved 
the  American  revolution. 

From  the  period  of  which  we  have  been  speaking, 
Mr.  Henry  became  the  idol  of  the  people  of  Virginia; 
nor  was  his  name  confined  to  his  native  state.  His  light 
and  heat  were  seen  and  felt  throughout  the  continent; 
and  he  was  every  where  regarded  as  the  great  cham- 
pion of  colonial  liberty. 

The  impulse  thus  given  by  Virginia,  was  caught  by 
the  other  colonies.  Her  resolutions  were  every  where 
adopted,  with  progressive  variations.  The  spirit  of  re- 
sistance became  bolder  and  bolder,  until  the  whole  con- 
tinent was  in  a  flame;  and  by  the  first  of  November, 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  67 

when  the  stamp  act  was,  according  to  its  provisions,  to 
have  taken  effect,  its  execution  had  become  utterly  im- 
practicable.4 


* 


*  The  chronicles  of  the  day  exhibit,  in  a  manner  very  curious  and  inter- 
esting, the  progress  of  these  feelings.  We  have  already  given  a  specimen 
of  the  drooping  spirit  of  the  Pennsylvania  Gazette,  on  the  first  annunciation 
of  the  stamp  act ;  but  after  Mr.  Henry  had  touched,  with  his  match,  the 
train  of  American  courage,  its  scintillations  were  seen,  sparkling  and  flash, 
ing,  on  every  page  of  this  paper.  Thus  in  the  paper  of  June  20th,  1775 — ■ 
"  We  learn  from  the  northward,  that  the  stamp  act  is  to  take  place  in  Ame« 
rica  on  All  Saints'  day,  the  first  of  November  next. — In  the  year  1755,  on  the 
1st  of  November,  happened  that  dreadful  and  memorable  earthquake,  which 
destroyed  the  city  of  Lisbon." 


68  SKETCHES  OF  THE 


SECTION  III. 

At  the  opening  of  the  next  session,  the  speaker  an- 
nounced the  repeal  of  the  stamp  act;  and  the  house  of 
burgesses,  in  a  paroxysm  of  feeling,  voted  a  statue  to 
the  king,  and  an  obelisk  to  the  British  patriots  by  whose 
exertions  the  repeal  had  been  effected.  But  before 
these  monuments  of  national  gratitude  could  be  executed, 
the  effervescence  subsided;  and  on  the  9th  of  December, 
1766,  the  bill  which  had  been  prepared  for  that  purpose, 
was  postponed  to  the  first  day  of  the  next  session ;  after 
which,  we  hear  of  it  no  more. 

At  the  session  of  1766,  a  question  of  great  interest  in 
those  days,  and  one  of  real  importance  to  the  colony, 
came  on  to  be  discussed  in  the  house  of  burgesses.  Mr. 
Robinson,  who  had  so  long  held  the  joint  offices  of 
speaker  and  treasurer,  was  now  dead.  The  general 
fact  of  his  delinquency  as  treasurer,  was  understood, 
although  the  sum  was  not  yet  ascertained:  and  that  de- 
linquency, whatever  it  might  be,  was  alleged  to  have 
arisen  principally,  from  loans  made  to  members  of  the 
house  of  burgesses.  As  the  speaker,  although  elected 
in  the  first  instance  by  the  house,  could  not  act  until 
approved  by  the  governor,  and  when  so  approved,  was 
in  office  for  seven  years,  re-eligible  indefinitely — and  as 
in  the  recent  instance  of  Mr.  Robinson,  it  had  been  dis- 
covered that  an  office  so  held,  was  too  apt  to  generate 
a  devotion  to  the  purposes  of  the  British  court — it  was 
considered  by  the  patriots  in  the  house,  as  a  measure 
of  sound  policy,  to  take  out  of  the  hands  of  the  speaker 
so  formidable  an  engine  of  corruption  and  power,  as  the 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  69 

treasury  of  the  colony .*  A  motion  was  therefore  made 
to  separate  the  office  of  treasurer  from  the  speaker's 
chair,  which  was  supported  by  Mr.  Henry  with  his 
usual  ability.  An  arduous  struggle  ensued.  Innova- 
tions, however  correct  in  themselves,  never  fail  to  startle 
those  who  have  grown  grey  in  a  veneration  for  the  ex- 
isting order  of  things.  They  fancy  that  they  see  in 
every  important  change,  an  indirect  blow  at  the  esta- 
blished government,  and  at  the  foundations  of  their  own 
property.  This  union  of  the  speaker's  chair  with  the 
office  of  treasurer,  was  one  of  those  errors  in  policy 
which  time  had  consecrated,  and  it  required  a  hand 
both  steady  and  skilful,  to  remove  the  veil  and  expose 
its  deformity.  That  hand  was  furnished  by  Mr.  Henry. 
The  union  of  boldness  and  decency  which  composed  his 
character,  of  decisive  energy  in  the  support  of  his  own 
opinions,  and  respectful  tenderness  towards  those  of 
others,  fitted  him  peculiarly  for  the  discharge  of  this 
duty.  The  house  admired  on  this  occasion,  the  facility 
with  which  he  could  adapt  himself  to  any  subject.  He 
had  that  foundation  of  strong  natural  sense,  without 
which  genius  is  a  misfortune;  an  instinctive  accuracy 
of  judgment,  which  always  proportioned  his  efforts  to 
the  occasion.  He  was  never  guilty  of  the  ridiculous 
and  common  error  amongst  young  members,  of  at- 
tempting to  force  the  subject  beyond  its  nature — of 


*  A  correspondent  furnishes  the  following  note  on  this  passage: — "  There 
was  but  one  clear  and  sound  bottom  on  which  the  separation  of  the  chair  and 
the  treasury  was  decided.  The  legislature  made  all  the  levies  of  money  pay- 
able into  the  hands  of  their  speaker,  over  whom  they  had  controul.  The  only 
hold  the  governor  had  on  him,  was  a  negative  on  his  appointment  as 
speaker  at  every  new  election,  which  amounted,  consequently,  to  a  nega- 
tive on  him  as  treasurer,  and  disposed  him,  so  far,  to  be  obsequious  to  the 
gfovernor." 


70  SKETCHES  OP  THE 

swelling  trifles  into  consequence,  and  working  the  ocean 
into  tempest, 

"  To  waft  a  feather,  or  to  drown  a  fly." 

It  is  almost  superfluous  to  add,  that  such  a  cause,  in  the 
hands  of  such  an  advocate,  did  not  fail  of  success.  The 
motion  for  separating  the  two  offices  being  carried,  a 
committee  was  appointed  to  examine  the  accounts 
of  the  late  treasurer,  and  their  report  disclosed 
an  enormous  deficit,  exceeding  an  hundred  thousand 
pounds. 

On  the  separation  of  the  offices  of  speaker  and 
treasurer,  Peyton  Randolph  the  attorney  general,  was 
elected  to  the  chair;  and  Robert  C.  Nicholas,  an  emi- 
nent lawyer  and  a  most  virtuous  man,  to  the  office  of 
treasurer. 

After  having  tried  his  strength  for  several  years  on 
the  legislative  floor,  against  some  of  the  brightest  cham- 
pions of  the  bar,  Mr.  Henry  came,  in  the  year  1769,  to 
the  bar  itself,  of  the  general  court.  "  The  profits  of  his 
practice  theretofore,  (says  my  informant,)  must  have  been 
veiy  moderate.  For,  about  this  time,  he  informed  me 
that  he  thought  his  property  was  not  worth  more  than 
fifteen  hundred  pounds;  adding  that,  if  he  could  only 
make  it  double  that  sum,  he  should  be  entirely  con- 
tent/'* 

At  this  bar,  he  entered  into  competition  with  all  the 
first  legal  characters  in  the  colony,  some  of  whom  had 
been  educated  at  the  Temple.  Mr.  Pendleton  and  Mr. 
Wythe  have  been  already  mentioned:  but  in  addition  to 
these  he  had  to  encounter  Mr.  John  Randolph,  Mr. 
Thompson  Mason,  Mr.  Robert  C.  Nicholas,  Mr.  Mer- 

*  Judge  Winston. 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  71 

cer,  Mr.  Blair,  and  Mr.  Jefferson;  all  of  them  masters 
of  the  learning  of  their  profession,  and  all  of  them,  men 
of  preeminent  abilities. 

It  cannot  be  expected  from  Mr.  Henry's  legal  pre- 
paration, that  he  was  able  to  contend  with  these  gentle- 
men on  a  mere  question  of  law.  He  wanted  that  learn- 
ing, whose  place  no  splendour  of  genius  can  supply  to 
the  lawyer;  and  he  wanted  those  habits  of  steady  and 
persevering  application,  without  which  that  learning  is 
not  to  be  acquired.  It  is  said  indeed,  that  he  was  wo- 
fully  deficient  as  a  lawyer:  so  little  acquainted  with  the 
fundamental  principles  of  his  profession,  and  so  little 
skilled  in  that  system  of  artificial  reasoning  on  which 
the  common  law  is  built,  as  not  to  be  able  to  see  the 
remote  bearings  of  the  reported  cases:  and  hence,  it  has 
been  said,  that  it  happened  with  him  not  unfrequently, 
whenever  he  did  attempt  to  argue  a  question  of  law,  to 
furnish  authorities  destructive  to  his  own  cause.  Yet 
he  never  did  and  never  could  vanquish  his  aversion  to 
the  systematic  study  of  the  law.  On  questions  turning 
on  the  laws  of  nations,  and  even  on  the  maritime  law, 
whose  basis  is  natural  reason  and  justice,  his  vigour  of 
mind,  made  him  occasionally,  very  great.  One  of  my 
correspondents,  for  example,  relates  to  me  an  instance 
of  his  appearing  in  the  court  of  admiralty,  under  the 
regal  government,  in  behalf  of  a  Spanish  captain,  whose 
vessel  and  cargo  had  been  libelled.  A  gentleman,  who 
was  present,  and  who  was  very  well  qualified  to  judge, 
was  heard  to  declare,  after  the  trial  was  over,  that  he 
never  heard  a  more  eloquent  or  argumentative  speech 
in  his  life;  that  Mr.  Henry  was,  on  that  occasion,  greatly 
superior  to  Mr.  Pendleton,  Mr.  Mason,  or  any  other 
counsel  who  spoke  to  the  subject;  and  that  he  was 
astonished  how  Mr.  Henry  could  have  acquired  such  a 


72  SKETCHES    OP   THE 

knowledge  of  the  maritime  law,  to  which,  it  was  believ- 
ed, he  had  never  before  turned  his  attention. 

But  this  special  preparation  on  a  given  subject,  and 
that  subject  too,  depending  on  the  liberal  and  equitable 
principles  of  the  maritime  law,  is  not  at  all  at  variance 
with  the  report  of  his  inefficiency,  on  questions  to  be 
decided  by  the  common  law  merely.  The  power  of  ar- 
guing questions  of  the  latter  description  to  advantage, 
requires  the  mind,  in  the  first  place,  to  be  deeply  im- 
bued with  that  peculiar  spirit  of  reasoning  which  reigns 
throughout  the  whole  system  of  the  common  law;  and, 
in  the  next,  it  requires  a  cool  and  clear  accuracy  of 
thinking,  and  an  elaborate  exactness  and  nicety  in  the 
deduction  of  thought,  to  which  Mr.  Henry's  early  and 
inveterate  habits  of  indolence,  as  well  as  the  sublime 
and  excursive  fervour  of  his  genius,  were  altogether 
hostile. 

It  was  on  questions  before  a  jury,  that  he  was  in  his 
natural  element.  There,  his  intimate  knowledge  of  hu- 
man nature,  and  the  rapidity  as  well  as  justness  of  his 
inferences,  from  the  flitting  expressions  of  the  counte- 
nance, as  to  what  was  passing  in  the  hearts  of  his 
hearers,  availed  him  fully,  The  jury  might  be  com- 
posed of  entire  strangers,  yet  he  rarely  failed  to  know 
them,  man  by  man,  before  the  evidence  was  closed. 
There  was  no  studied  fixture  of  features,  that  could 
long  hide  the  character  from  his  piercing  and  expe- 
rienced view.  The  slightest  unguarded  turn  of  counte- 
nance, or  motion  of  the  eye,  let  him  at  once  into  the  soul 
of  the  man  whom  he  was  observing.  Or,  if  he  doubted 
whether  his  conclusions  were  correct,  from  the  exhibi- 
tions of  countenance  during  the  narration  of  the  evi- 
dence, he  had  a  mode  of  playing  a  prelude  as  it  were, 
upon  the  jury,  in  his  exordium,  which  never  failed  to 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  73 

"  wake  into  life  each  silent  string,"  and  show  him  the 
whole  compass  as  well  as  pitch  of  the  instrument;  and, 
indeed,  (if  we  may  believe  all  the  concurrent  accounts 
of  his  exhibitions  in  the  general  court,)  the  most  exqui- 
site performer  that  ever  "  swept  the  sounding  lyre/' 
had  not  a  more  sovereign  mastery  over  its  powers,  than 
Mr.  Henry  had  over  the  springs  of  feeling  and  thought 
that  belong  to  a  jury.  There  was  a  delicacy,  a  taste,  a 
felicity,  in  his  touch,  that  was  perfectly  original,  and 
without  a  rival.  His  style  of  address,  on  these  occa- 
sions, is  said  to  have  resembled  very  much  that  of  the 
scriptures.  It  was  strongly  marked  with  the  same  sim- 
plicity, the  same  energy,  the  same  pathos.  He  sounded 
no  alarm;  he  made  no  parade,  to  put  the  jury  on  their 
guard.  It  was  all  so  natural,  so  humble,  so  unassum- 
ing, that  they  were  carried  imperceptibly  along,  and  at- 
tuned to  his  purpose,  until  some  master  touch  dissolved 
them  into  tears.  His  language  of  passion  was  perfect. 
There  was  no  word  "  of  learned  length  or  thundering 
sound,"  to  break  the  charm.  It  had  almost  all  the  still- 
ness of  solitary  thinking.  It  was  a  sweet  reverie,  a  de- 
licious trance.  His  voice,  too,  had  a  wonderful  effect 
He  had  a  singular  power  of  infusing  it  into  a  jury,  and 
mixing  its  notes  with  their  nerves,  in  a  manner  which  it 
is  impossible  to  describe  justly;  but  which  produced  a 
thrilling  excitement,  in  the  happiest  concordance  with 
his  designs.  No  man  knew  so  well  as  he  did  what  kind 
of  topics  to  urge  to  their  understandings;  nor  what  kind 
of  simple  imager}'  to  present  to  their  hearts.  His  eye, 
which  he  kept  rivetted  upon  them,  assisted  the  process 
of  fascination,  and  at  the  same  time  informed  him  what 
theme  to  press,  or  at  what  instant  to  retreat,  if  by  rare 
accident  he  touched  an  impropitious  string.  And  then 
he  had  such  an  exuberance  of  appropriate  thoughts,,  of 

K 


74  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

apt  illustrations,  of  apposite  images,  and  such  a  melo- 
dious and  varied  roll  of  the  happiest  words,  that  the 
hearer  was  never  wearied  by  repetition,  and  never 
winced  from  an  apprehension  that  the  intellectual  trea- 
sures of  the  speaker  would  be  exhausted.* 

The  defence  of  criminal  causes  was  his  great  profes- 
sional forte.  It  seems  that  the  eighth  day  of  the  gene- 
ral court  was  formerly  set  apart  for  criminal  business. 
Mr.  Henry  made  little  or  no  figure,  during  the  civil  days 
of  the  court;  but  on  the  eighth  day,  he  was  the  mo- 
narch of  the  bar.  These  causes  brought  him  into  di- 
rect collision  with  Mr.  John  Randolph,  who  had  now 
succeeded  Peyton  as  the  attorney  general. 

Mr.  Randolph,  it  has  been  remarked,  was,  in  person 
and  manners,  among  the  most  elegant  gentlemen  in  the 
colony,  and  in  his  profession,  one  of  the  most  splendid 
ornaments  of  the  bar.  He  was  a  polite  scholar,  as  well 
as  a  profound  lawyer,  and  his  eloquence  also,  was  of  a 


*  A  striking  example  of  this  witchery  of  his  eloquence,  even  on  common 
subjects,  was  related  by  a  very  respectable  gentleman,  the  late  major  Joseph 
Scott,  the  marshal  of  this  state.  This  gentleman  had  been  summoned,  at 
great  inconvenience  to  his  private  affairs,  to  attend  as  a  witness  a  distant 
court,  in  which  Mr.  Henry  practised.  The  cause  which  had  carried  him  thi- 
ther having  been  disposed  of,  he  was  setting  out  in  great  haste  to  return, 
when  the  sheriff  summoned  him  to  serve  on  a  jury.  This  cause  was  repre- 
sented as  a  complicated  and  important  one ;  so  important,  as  to  have  enlisted 
in  it  all  the  most  eminent  members  of  the  bar.  He  was  therefore  alarmed  at 
the  prospect  of  a  long  detention,  and  made  an  unavailing  effort  with  the 
court  to  get  himself  discharged  from  the  jury.  He  was  compelled  to  take 
his  seat.  When  his  patience  had  been  nearly  exhausted  by  the  previous 
speakers,  Mr.  Henry  rose  to  conclude  the  cause,  and  having  much  matter  to 
answer,  the  major  stated  that  he  considered  himself  a  prisoner  for  the  even- 
ing, if  not  for  the  night.  But,  to  his  surprise,  Mr.  Henry  appeared  to  have 
consumed  not  more  than  fifteen  minutes  in  the  reply  ;  and  he  would  scarcely 
believe  his  own  watch,  or  those  of  the  other  jurymen,  when  they  informed 
him  that  he  had  in  reality  been  speaking  upwards  of  two  hours.  So  power- 
fid  was  the  charm  by  which  he  could  bind  the  senses  of  his  hearers,  and 
make  even  the  most  impatient,  unconscious  of  the  lapse  of  time. 


LIFE  OP  HENRY.  75. 

high  order.  His  voice,  action,  style,  were  stately,  and 
uncommonly  impressive;  but  gigantic  as  he  was  in  re- 
lation to  other  men,  he  was  but  a  pigmy,  when  opposed 
in  a  criminal  trial,  to  the  arch  magician,  Henry.  In  those 
cases  Mr.  Henry  was  perfectly  irresistible.  He  adapted 
himself,  without  effort  to  the  character  of  the  cause;  seiz- 
ed with  the  quickness  of  intuition,  its  defensible  point,  and 
never  permitted  the  jury  to  lose  sight  of  it.  Sir  Joshua 
Reynolds  has  said  of  Titian,  that,  by  a  few  strokes  of 
his  pencil,  he  knew  how  to  mark  the  image  and  charac- 
ter of  whatever  object  he  attempted;  and  produced,  by 
this  means  a  truer  representation,  than  any  of  his  pre- 
decessors, who  finished  every  hair.  In  like  manner,  Mr. 
Henry  by  a  few  master  strokes  upon  the  evidence,  could 
in  general  stamp  upon  the  cause  whatever  image  or 
character  he  pleased;  and  convert  it  into  tragedy  or 
comedy,  at  his  sovereign  will,  and  with  a  power  which 
no  efforts  of  his  adversary  could  counteract.  He  never 
wearied  the  jury  by  a  dry  and  minute  analysis  of  the 
evidence;  he  did  not  expend  his  strength  in  finishing 
the  hairs;  he  produced  all  his  high  effect  by  those  rare 
master  touches,  and  by  the  resistless  skill,  with  which,  in 
a  very  few  words,  he  could  mould  and  colour  the  pro- 
minent facts  of  a  cause  to  his  purpose.  He  had  won- 
derful address  too,  in  leading  off  the  minds  of  his 
hearers  from  the  contemplation  of  unfavourable  points, 
if  at  any  time  they  were  too  stubborn  to  yield  to  his 
power  of  transformation.  He  beguiled  the  hearer  so 
far  from  them,  as  to  diminish  them  by  distance,  and 
soften,  if  not  entirely  cast  into  shade,  their  too  strong 
natural  colours.  At  this  distance  too,  he  had  a  better 
opportunity  of  throwing  upon  them  a  false  light,  by  an 
apparently  casual  ray  of  refraction  from  other  points  in 
the  evidence,  whose  powers  no  man  better  knew  how  to 


76  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

array  and  concentrate,  in  order  to  disguise  or  eclipse  an 
obnoxious  fact.  It  required  a  mind  of  uncommon 
vigilance,  and  most  intractable  temper,  to  resist  this 
charm  with  which  he  decoyed  away  his  hearers;  it 
demanded  a  rapidity  of  penetration,  which  is  rarely  if 
ever,  to  be  found  in  the  jury  box,  to  detect  the  intel- 
lectual juggle  by  which  he  spread  his  nets  around  them; 
it  called  for  a  stubbornness  and  obduracy  of  soul  which 
does  not  exist,  to  sit  unmoved  under  the  pictures  of 
horror  or  of  pity,  which  started  from  his  canvass.  They 
might  resolve  if  they  pleased,  to  decide  the  cause  against 
him,  and  to  disregard  every  thing  which  he  could  urge 
in  the  defence  of  his  client.  But  it  was  all  in  vain. 
Some  feint  in  an  unexpected  direction,  threw  them  off 
their  guard,  and  they  were  gone;  some  happy  phrase, 
burning  from  the  soul,  some  image  fresh  from  nature's 
mint,  and  bearing  her  own  beautiful  and  genuine  im- 
press, struck  them  with  delightful  surprise,  and  melted 
them  into  conciliation;  and  conciliation  towards  Mr. 
Henry  was  victory  inevitable.  In  short,  he  understood 
the  human  character  so  perfectly;  knew  so  well  all  its 
strength  and  all  its  weaknesses,  together  with  every 
path  and  by-way  which  winds  around  to  the  citadel  of 
the  best  fortified  heart  and  mind,  that  he  never  failed  to 
take  them,  either  by  stratagem  or  storm.  Hence  he 
was,  beyond  doubt,  the  ablest  defender  of  criminals  in 
Virginia,  and  will  probably  never  be  equalled  again. 

It  has  been  observed,  that  Mr.  Henry's  knowledge  of 
the  common  law  was  extremely  defective;  but  his  attend- 
ance upon  the  general  court  was  calculated  to  cure  that 
defect,  in  a  considerable  degree.  All  legal  questions,  of 
magnitude  or  difficulty,  came  before  that  tribunal,  either 
originally,  or  by  appeal;  and  he  had  continual  oppor- 
tunities of  hearing  them  discussed  in  the  ablest  manner, 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  77 

by  the  brightest  luminaries  of  the  American  bar.  His 
was  a  mind  on  which  nothing  was  lost;  on  which  no 
useful  seed  could  be  cast,  without  shooting  into  all  the 
luxuriance  of  which  its  nature  was  susceptible.  Thus 
improving  every  hint,  and  ramifying  every  principle 
which  was  brought  into  his  view,  there  is  reason  to 
believe  that  a  few  years  must  have  made  him  not  only  a 
master  of  the  general  canons  of  property,  but  of  the 
modifications  and  exceptions  of  more  frequent  occur- 
rence, by  which  those  canons  are  restrained  and  govern- 
ed. In  support  of  this  conclusion,  I  find  that  in  January 
1773,  Robert  C.  Nicholas,  who  had  enjoyed  the  first 
practice  at  the  bar,  and  who,  by  virtue  of  his  office  of 
treasurer,  was  forced  to  relinquish  that  practice,  com- 
mitted, by  a  public  advertisement,  his  unfinished  busi- 
ness to  Mr.  Henry;  a  step  which  a  man  so  remarkably 
scrupulous  in  the  discharge  of  every  moral  duty,  would 
not  have  taken,  had  there  been  any  incompetency  on 
the  part  of  his  substitute. 

The  British  ministry,  however,  did  not  permit  Mr. 
Henry  to  waste  himself  in  forensic  exertions.  The  joy 
of  the  Americans,  on  the  repeal  of  the  stamp  act,  was 
very  short-lived.  That  measure  had  not  been,  on  the 
part  of  the  British  parliament,  a  voluntary  sacrifice  to 
truth  and  right.  The  ministry  and  their  friends  disavow- 
ed this  ground;  and  were  forward,  on  every  occasion, 
to  convince  the  colonies  that  they  had  nothing  to  ex- 
pect, either  from  the  clemency  or  the  magnanimity  of 
the  British  cabinet.  Thus  on  a  question  of  supplies  for 
the  army  in  the  session  of  parliament  of  1766-7,  a 
motion  was  made  in  the  house  of  commons,  that  the 
revenues  arising  and  to  arise  in  America,  be  applied  to 
subsisting  the  troops  now  there,  and  those  other  regi- 
ments which  it  is  proposed  to  send;  in  support  of  which. 


78  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

that  brilliant  political  meteor,  Charles  Townsend, 
urged,  among  other  things,  "  the  propriety  of  more 
troops  being  sent  to  America,  and  of  tlieir  being  quar- 
tered in  the  large  towns.  He  said  that  he  had  a  plan 
preparing,  which  he  would  lay  before  the  house,  for  the 
raising  of  supplies  in  America.  That  the  legislative 
authority  of  Great  Britain,  extended  to  every  colony, 
in  every  particular.  That  the  distinction,  between  in- 
ternal and  external  taxes,  was  nonsense;  and  that  he 
voted  for  the  repeal  of  the  stamp  act,  not  because  it  was 
not  a  good  act,  but  because,  at  that  time,  there  appealed 
a  propiiety  in  repealing  it.  He  added,  that  he  repeated 
the  sentence,  that  tliegallenes  miglit  hear  him;  and  after 
that,  lie  did  not  expect  to  luive  his  statue  erected  in  Ame- 
rica: in  all  which,  Mr.  Grenville  joined  him  fully." 

This  temper  soon  manifested  itself  in  open  acts,  and 
turned  the  late  joy  of  the  colonies,  into  mourning. 

The  first  obnoxious  measure  was  a  stern  demand  of 
satisfaction,  from  the  legislatures  of  the  colonies,  for  the 
injuries  which  had  been  done  to  the  stamp  officers  and 
their  adherents.  The  legislature  of  Massachusetts,  of 
whom  this  demand  was  first  made,  veiy  respectfully, 
and  with  good  reason  questioned  the  propriety  and  jus- 
tice of  taxing  the  whole  colony,  for  the  excesses  of  a 
few  individuals,  which  they  had  neither  prompted  nor 
approved;  for  the  sake  of  peace  however,  and  in  the 
spirit  of  accommodation  that  satisfaction  was  given;  but 
they  annexed  to  their  vote  of  satisfaction,  a  grant  of  par- 
don to  the  rioters;  and  in  England,  according  to  the 
usual  courtesy  of  that  country,  nothing  was  said  of  the 
satisfaction,  while  the  pardon  was  treated  as  a  most 
insolent  and  impudent  usurpation  of  the  royal  au- 
thority. 

The  next  step  was  that  suggested  by  Mr.  Townsend. 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  79 

of  quartering  large  bodies  of  troops  upon  the  chief  towns 
in  the  colonies,  and  demanding  of  the  several  colonial 
legislatures,  a  provision  for  their  comfortable  support 
and  accommodation.  A  measure  more  replete  with 
exasperation  could  scarcely  have  been  devised.  The 
very  presence  of  those  myrmidons  was  an  insult;  for  it 
was  a  direct  reflection  on  the  fidelity  of  the  colonists. 
Their  object  was  perfectly  understood:  it  was  to  curb 
the  just  and  honourable  spirit  of  the  people;  to  dragoon 
them  into  submission  to  the  parliamentary  claim  of  taxa- 
tion, and  reduce  them  to  the  condition  of  vassals,  go- 
verned by  the  right  of  conquest.  The  rudeness  of  the 
soldiery  too,  was  well  calculated  to  keep  up  and  in- 
crease the  irritation,  which  their  presence  alone  would 
have  been  sufficient  to  excite.  In  Boston,  they  were  in 
the  habit  of  stopping  the  most  respectable  citizens  in 
the  streets  and  compelling  them  to  answer  insulting  in- 
quiries, or  committing  them  to  confinement  on  their  re- 
fusal, assigning,  as  the  ground  of  their  conduct,  that 
the  town  was  a  garrisoned  town.  In  New  York, 
they  provoked  a  contest  with  the  people  by  making 
war  upon  a  liberty  pole,  which  was  the  first  object 
of  their  earthly  devotions,  and  which  the  soldiers  conti- 
nually destroyed  or  attempted  to  destroy,  as  soon  as  it 
could  be  replaced.  And  as  if  all  this  insult  and  humilia- 
tion were  not  enough,  the  colonies  were  to  be  constrain- 
ed to  tax  themselves,  to  foster  and  cherish  those  instru- 
ments of  their  degradation. 

The  legislature  of  New  York,  in  a  tone,  at  least 
sufficiently  submissive  for  the  occasion,  and  on  the  false 
ground  of  the  inability  of  the  colony,  begged  to  be  ex- 
cused from  making  the  provision.  For  this  high  offence, 
the  legislative  power  of  that  colony  was  abolished  by 
act  of  parliament,  until  they  should  submit  to  make 


80  fc        SKETCHES  OF  THE 

the    provision    which  was    required :   and  they    did 
submit. 

A  body  of  British  troops  alleged  to  have  been  driven 
by  stress  of  weather  into  Boston,  in  the  recess  of  the 
colonial  legislature,  had  been  provided  for  out  of  the 
public  monies,  by  the  governor  and  his  council.  The 
legislature  met  shortly  afterwards,  and  remonstrated 
against  this  unconstitutional  appropriation,  with  that 
Roman  firmness  and  dignity,  which  marked  the  charac- 
ter of  Massachusetts  in  every  stage  of  the  contest.  But 
governor  Bernard,  highly  indignant  at  what  he  affected 
to  consider  as  presumption,  made  such  a  communica- 
tion upon  the  subject  to  the  British  court,  as  could  have 
had,  and  could  have  been  designed  to  have  no  other 
effect,  than  to  widen  the  breach,  and  inflame  more  high- 
ly those  animosities,  which  already  required  no  new 
aggravation. 

These  military  preparations  were  well  understood  to 
be  the  harbingers  of  some  unconstitutional  act,  the  exe- 
cution of  which  they  were  necessary  to  enforce.  Why 
those  preparations  were  restricted  to  the  northern 
states,  and  more  particularly  to  Massachusetts,  has  never 
been  satisfactorily  explained.  There  was  no  colony 
which  resisted,  with  more  firmness  and  constancy,  the 
pretensions  of  the  British  parliament  than  that  of  Vir- 
ginia; yet  no  military  force  was  thought  necessary,  dur- 
ing the  lives  of  the  governors  Fauquier  and  Bottetourt, 
to  keep  down  the  spirit  of  rebellion  in  this  colony.  A 
solution  of  the  difficulty  may  perhaps  be  found,  in  the 
character  of  the  different  governors.  Virginia  had  the 
good  fortune,  during  this  period,  to  be  governed  by  en- 
lightened and  amiable  men,  who  saw  and  did  justice  to 
the  motives  and  measure  of  resistance  which  was  medi- 
tated; who  were  both  able  and  willing  to  distinguish  be- 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  81 

tween  reason  and  force,  between  remonstrance  and 
rebellion;  who  perceived  with  pleasure,  the  spirit  of 
genuine  and  unaffected  loyalty  and  affection  for  the 
parent  country,  which  mingled  itself  with  every  com- 
plaint; and  who,  in  their  communications  to  the  British 
court,  were  disposed  rather  "  to  extenuate,"  than  "  to  set 
down  aught  in  malice."  Whereas  Bernard,  the  governor 
of  Massachusetts,  was  the  fit  instrument  and  apt  re- 
presentative of  the  masters  whom  he  served:  for  he  had 
all  their  pride  and  unfeeling  insolence,  and  seems  to 
have  enjoyed  a  kind  of  fiend-like  pleasure,  in  rendering 
his  province  hateful  at  home,  by  the  most  virulent 
misrepresentations;  and  in  drawing  down  upon  her, 
the  accumulated  curses  and  oppressions  of  the  parent 
country* 

These  preparatory  steps  having  been  taken,  an  act 
of  parliament  was  passed,  imposing  certain  duties  on 
glass,  yyhite  and  red  lead,  painters'  colours,  tea,  and 
paper  imported  into  the  colonies.  This  act  was  to  take 
effect  on  the  20th  of  November,  1 767 ;  and  to  ensure  its 
operation,  another  act  authorized  the  king  to  appoint  a 
board  of  trade  to  reside  in  the  colonies,  and  to  instruct 
them,  at  his  pleasure  and  without  limit,  as  to  the  mode 
of  executing  their  duties  under  this  law.  A  commis- 
sion accordingly  issued,  by  which  the  commissioners 
were  armed  with  a  power  of  search  and  seizure,  at  their 


*  Extract  of  a  letter,  dated  London,  June  5, 1770.  "  The  people  of  Eng- 
land now  curse  governor  Bernard,  as  bitterly  as  those  of  America.  Bernard 
was  drove  out  of  the  Smyrna  coffee-house  not  many  days  since,  by  general 
Oglethorpe,  who  told  him  he  was  a  dirty,  factious  scoundrel,  and  smelled 
cursed  strong  of  the  hangman ;  that  he  had  better  leave  the  room,  as  unwor- 
thy to  mix  with  gentlemen  of  character,  but  that  he  woidd  give  him  the 
satisfaction  of  following  him  to  the  door,  had  he  any  thing  to  reply.  The 
governor  left  the  house  like  a  guilty  coward."  Pennsylvania  Gazette, 
August  30th,  1770. 

L 


82  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

discretion;  with  authority  to  call  for  aid,  upon  the  na- 
val and  military  establishments  within  the  colony;  and 
with  an  exemption  from  prosecution  or  responsibility  be- 
fore any  of  the  king's  courts,  for  whatsoever  they  might 
do,  by  any  construction  of  tlieir  commission. 

Another  measure  which  gave  great  offence  to  the  co- 
lonies, was  the  establishment  of  a  board  of  admiralty, 
with  extensive  powers,  supported  by  large  salaries  in- 
dependent of  the  colonies,  yet  drawn  from  the  revenues 
compulsorily  levied  upon  them;  and  the  appointment, 
also,  of  common  law  judges,  to  be  paid  by  the  crown 
out  of  the  revenues  of  the  colony,  and  to  hold  their 
offices  during  the  king's  pleasure. 

To  all  these  outrages,  the  legislatures  of  the  colonies 
answered  by  petitions,  memorials,  remonstrances,  and 
letters,  addressed  to  the  friends  of  colonial  liberty  in 
England;  blending  with  the  strongest  professions  of  loy- 
alty, the  expression  of  their  hope,  that  those  obnoxious 
measures  would  be  reconsidered  and  reversed,  and  the 
colonies  protected  in  their  ancient  and  unalienable 
rights.  In  reply,  they  received  from  the  kindest  of 
their  English  friends,  only  exhortations  to  patience  un- 
der their  sufferings;  by  the  court  party,  menaces  and 
anathemas  were  brandished  over  their  heads;  and  the 
commissioners  of  the  revenue,  together  with  their  auxi- 
liaries, the  naval  and  military  officers  and  soldiery,  con- 
tinued to  outrage  and  insult  them,  both  in  their  persons 
and  property. 

The  people  of  Massachusetts,  with  the  view  of  frus- 
trating the  new  revenue  bill,  entered  into  an  associa- 
tion, by  which  they  bound  themselves  not  to  import  from 
Great  Britain,  or  use  any  t>f  the  articles  taxed;  and  in- 
cluded in  the  resolution  every  article  of  British  manu- 
facture which  was  not  of  the  first  and  most  indispensa- 


LIFE    OF    HENRY.  83 

ble  necessity.  The  legislature  of  that  state  also,  re- 
solved on  a  circular  letter  to  their  sister  colonies,  invit- 
ing their  concurrence  and  co-operation  towards  pro- 
curing relief,  in  a  constitutional  way,  from  the  griev- 
ances under  which  they  were  all  suffering.  This  mea- 
sure having  been  reported  by  governor  Bernard  with 
his  usual  embellishments,  to  the  earl  of  Hilsborough, 
the  British  minister  for  the  American  department,  that 
minister  required  the  governor  to  demand  of  the  legis- 
lature an  immediate  recision  of  their  resolution,  on  pain 
of  being  forthwith  dissolved.  They  refused  to  rescind, 
and  were  dissolved  accordingly.  The  same  minister 
also  addressed  a  circular  letter  to  the  governors  of  the 
other  colonies,  exhorting  them  to  crush  this  correspond- 
ence and  concert  amongst  the  colonial  legislatures,  in  the 
bud,  by  exacting  from  them  an  assurance  that  they 
would  not  answer  the  circular  of  Massachusetts.  They 
refused  to  give  such  assurance,  and  were  in  their  turn 
dissolved. 

These  violent  measures  however,  produced  an  effect 
very  different  from  that  which  was  expected  to  flow 
from  them.  The  dissolution  of  their  legislatures  swelled 
the  catalogue  of  their  wrongs,  and  ministered  additional 
fuel  to  the  resentments  of  the  people.  The  non-im- 
portation agreement  became  general;  and,  by  means  of 
committees  established  in  the  several  colonies,  its  execu- 
tion was  guarded  with  a  vigilance  which  could  not  be 
eluded.  A  breach  of  it  was  infamy,  inevitable  and  un- 
pardonable. Its  observance  was  a  badge  of  honour,  by 
which  the  patriot  colonist  was  proud  to  be  distinguish- 
ed. The  privation  was,  indeed,  in  many  respects  se- 
vere; but  the  sufferers  were  upheld  by  that  kind  of  holy 
fortitude,  which  enabled  the  Christian  martyrs  to  smile 
amidst  the  flames,  and  to  triumph,  even  in  the  agonies  of 


84  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

death.  Every  grade  of  society,  all  ages,  and  both  sexes, 
kindled  in  this  sacred  competition  of  patriotism.  The 
ladies  of  the  colonies,  in  the  dawn  and  throughout  the 
whole  progress  of  the  revolution,  shone  with  pre-emi- 
nent lustre  in  this  war  of  fortitude  and  self-denial.  They 
renounced  without  a  sigh,  the  use  of  the  luxuries  and 
even  of  the  comforts  to  which  they  had  been  accustom- 
ed; and  felt  a  nobler  pride  in  appearing  dressed  in  the 
simple  productions  of  their  own  looms,  than  they  had 
ever  experienced  from  glittering  in  the  brightest  orna- 
ments of  the  east. 

The  British  court  looked  upon  this  trial  of  virtuous 
fortitude,  with  surly  and  inexorable  rigour.  They  seem- 
ed determined  to  carry  the  point,  at  every  hazard.  The 
sufferings  of  their  own  merchants  and  manufacturers 
were  forgotten,  in  the  barbarous  pleasure  with  which 
they  contemplated  the  sufferings  of  the  colonists.  It  is 
not  in  human  nature  to  continue  long  to  return  good  for 
evil,  affection  for  cruelty.  The  admiration  and  devo- 
tion of  the  colonies  for  the  parent  country  became  gra- 
dually weaker.  This  transition  of  feeling  is  most  inter- 
estingly marked  in  the  chronicles  of  the  day.  The 
epithets,  "  our  kind  and  indulgent  mother,"  with  which 
she  was  wont  to  be  greeted,  were  progressively  changed 
into  "  unnatural  parent — cruel  stepmother — proud,  mer- 
ciless oppressor — haughty,  unfeeling,  and  unrelenting  ty- 
rant." This  state  of  feeling  was  aggravated  by  the  col- 
lisions which  were  perpetually  occurring  between  the 
king's  soldiery  and  the  people  of  the  towns  in  which 
they  were  quartered.  The  streets  of  New  York  and  of 
Boston  were  the  theatres  of  continual  riots,  ending  al- 
most invariably  in  blood,  and  not  unfrequently  in  death. 
The  newspapers  of  the  day  teem  with  the  detail  of 
scenes  of  this  sort;  and  from  the  effect  which  they  pro- 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  85 

duce  on  the  reader  at  this  distance  of  time,  it  is  not 
very  difficult  to  conceive  what  must  have  been  their  ope- 
ration on  the  people  of  that  day,  already  goaded  to  mad- 
ness by  previous  injuries. 

It  is  not  my  purpose  to  record  the  series  of  measures 
which  led  to  the  dismemberment  of  the  British  empire. 
This  is  the  function  of  the  historian.  My  business  is 
only  with  Mr.  Henry;  and,  for  my  purpose,  nothing 
more  is  necessary  than  to  recal  the  general  character 
of  the  contest,  for  the  purpose  of  showing  the  part  which 
he  bore  in  it.  The  revolution  may  be  truly  said  to  have 
commenced  with  his  resolutions  in  1765.  From  that 
period  not  an  hour  of  settled  peace  had  existed  between 
the  two  countries.  It  is  true,  that  the  eruption  produced 
by  the  stamp  act,  had  subsided  with  its  repeal;  and  the 
people  had  resumed  their  ancient  settlements  and  occu- 
pations; but  there  was  no  peace  of  the  heart  or  of  the 
mind.  The  rumbling  of  the  volcano  was  still  audible, 
and  the  smoke  of  the  crater  continually  ascended, 
mingled  not  unfrequently  with  those  flames  and  masses 
of  ignited  matter,  which  announced  a  new  and  more 
terrible  explosion. 

These  were  "  the  times  that  tried  the  souls  of  men ;" 
and  never,  in  any  country  or  in  any  age,  did  there  exist 
a  race  of  men,  whose  souls  were  better  fitted  to  endure 
the  trial.  Patient  in  suffering,  firm  in  adversity,  calm 
and  collected  amid  the  dangers  which  passed  around 
them,  cool  in  council,  and  brave  in  battle,  they  were 
worthy  of  the  cause,  and  the  cause  was  worthy  of 
them. 

The  house  of  burgesses  of  Virginia,  which  had  led 
the  opposition  to  the  stamp  act,  kept  their  high  ground 
during  the  whole  of  the  ensuing  contest.  Mr.  Henry, 
having  removed  again  from  Louisa  to  his  native  county, 


86  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

in  the  year  1767  or  1768.  continued  a  member  of  that 
house,  till  the  close  of  the  revolution;  and  there  could 
be  no  want  of  boldness  in  any  body,  of  which  he  was  a 
member.  The  session  of  1 768-9,  was  marked  by  a 
set  of  resolutions  so  strong  as  to  have  excited  even  the 
amiable  and  popular  Bottetourt  to  displeasure.  By 
those  resolutions  they  re-asserted,  in  the  most  emphatic 
terms,  the  exclusive  right  of  the  colony  to  tax  themselves 
in  all  cases  whatever;  complained  of  the  recent  acts  of 
parliament,  as  so  many  violations  of  the  British  constitu- 
tion; and  remonstrated  vigorously,  against  the  right  of 
transporting  the  free-born  subjects  of  these  colonies  to 
England,  to  take  their  trial  before  prejudiced  tribunals, 
for  offences  alleged  to  be  committed  in  the  colonies. 
The  tradition  with  regard  to  these  resolutions,  is,  that 
they  were  agreed  to  in  a  committee  of  the  whole  on 
one  day,  but  not* reported  to  the  house,  with  the  view  of 
preventing  their  appearance  on  the  journal  of  the  next 
day,  before  they  could  be  completely  passed  through 
the  forms  of  the  house;  apprehending,  from  the  fate  of 
the  Massachusetts  legislature,  that  a  knowledge  of  these 
resolutions  on  the  part  of  the  governor,  would  produce 
an  immediate  dissolution  of  the  house.  When  the  house 
rose  for  the  evening,  however,  the  fact  of  their  having 
passed  such  resolutions  was  whispered  to  the  governor; 
and  he  endeavoured  in  vain,  to  procure  a  copy  of  them 
from  the  clerk.*  On  the  next  clay,  the  house  foresee- 
ing the  event,  met  on  the  instant  of  the  ringing  of  the 
bell,  and  with  closed  doors,  received  the  report  of  their 
resolutions,  considered,  adopted,  and  ordered  them  to 
be  entered  upon  their  journals;  which  they  had  scarcely 
done,  when  they  were  summoned  to  attend  the  governor, 
and  were  dissolved.     "  Mr.  Speaker/'  said  he,  "  and 

*  Mr.  Wythe. 


LIFE    OF    HENRY.  87 

gentleman  of  the  house  of  representatives,  I  have  heard 
of  your  resolves,  and  augur  ill  of  their  effects;  you  have 
made  it  my  duty  to  dissolve  you,  and  you  are  accord- 
ingly dissolved." 

But  the  dissolution  of  the  house  of  burgesses,  did  not 
change  the  materials  of  which  it  had  been  composed.  The 
same  members  were  re-elected  without  a  single  excep- 
tion, and  the  same  determined  spirit  of  resistance  con- 
tinued to  diffuse  itself  from  the  legislature  over  the  colony 
which  they  represented,  and  to  animate  by  sympathy  the 
neighbouring  colonies.  This  house  had  the  merit  of  origi- 
nating that  powerful  engine  of  resistance,  corresponding 
committees  between  the  legislatures  of  the  different 
colonies*  The  measure  was  brought  forward  by  Mr. 
Dabney  Carr,  a  new  member  from  the  county  of  Louisa, 
in  a  committee  of  the  whole  house,  on  the  12th  of  March, 
1773;  and  the  resolutions,  as  adopted,  now  stood  upon 
the  journals  of  the  day,  in  the  following  terms: 

"  Whereas  the  minds  of  his  majesty's  faithful  sub- 
jects in  this  colony  have  been  much  disturbed,  by  various 
rumours,  and  reports  of  proceedings,  tending  to  deprive 
them  of  their  ancient,  legal,  and  constitutional  rights. 

"  And  whereas  the  affairs  of  this  colony  are  frequently 
connected  with  those  of  Great  Britain,  as  well  as  the 
neighbouring  colonies,  which  renders  a  communication 
of  sentiments  necessary;  in  order,  therefore,  to  remove 
the  uneasiness,  and  to  quiet  the  minds  of  the  people,  as 
well  as  for  the  other  good  purposes  above  mentioned: 

*  The  state  of  Massachusetts  is  entitled  to  equal  honour  :  the  measures 
were  so  nearly  coeval  in  the  two  states,  as  to  render  it  impossible  that  either 
could  have  borrowed  it  from  the  other.  The  messengers,  who  bore  the 
propositions  from  the  two  states,  are  said  to  have  crossed  each  other  on  the 
way.  This  is  Mr.  Jefferson's  account  of  it ;  and  Mrs.  Warren,  in  her  very 
interesting  history  of  the  revolution,  admits,  that  the  measure  was  original 
on  the  part  of  Virginia.     See  the  note  to  page  110,  of  her  first  volume 


88  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

"  Be  it  resolved,  That  a  standing  committee  of  corre- 
spondence and  enquiry  be  appointed,  to  consist  of 
eleven  persons,  to  wit:  the  honourable  Peyton  Ran- 
dolph esquire,  Robert  C.  Nicholas,  Richard  Bland, 
Richard  H.  Lee,  Benjamin  Harrison,  Edmund  Pendle- 
ton, Patrick  Henry,  Dudley  Digges,  Dabney  Carr, 
Archibald  Cary,  and  Thomas  Jefferson,  esquires,  any 
six  of  whom  to  be  a  committee,  whose  business  it  shall  be 
to  obtain  the  most  early  and  authentic  intelligence  of  all 
such  acts  and  resolutions  of  the  British  parliament,  or 
proceedings  of  administration,  as  may  relate  to,  or  affect 
the  British  colonies  in  America;  and  to  keep  up  and 
maintain  a  correspondence  and  communication  with 
our  sister  colonies,  respecting  those  important  considera- 
tions; and  the  result  of  such  their  proceedings,  from 
time  to  time,  to  lay  before  this  house. 

"  Resolved,  That  it  be  an  instruction  to  the  said  com- 
mittee, that  they  do,  without  delay,  inform  themselves 
particularly  of  the  principles  and  authority,  on  which 
was  constituted  a  court  of  enquiry,  said  to  have  been 
lately  held  in  Rhode  Island,  with  powers  to  transport 
persons  accused  of  offences  committed  in  America,  to 
places  beyond  the  seas,  to  be  tried. 

"  The  said  resolutions  being  severally  read  a  second 
time,  were,  upon  the  question  severally  put  thereupon, 
agreed  to  by  the  house,  nemine  contradicente. 

"  Resolved,  That  the  speaker  of  this  house  do  trans- 
mit to  the  speakers  of  the  different  assemblies  of  the 
British  colonies  on  the  continent,  copies  of  the  said  re- 
solutions, and  desire  that  they  will  lay  them  before  their 
respective  assemblies,  and  request  them  to  appoint 
some  person  or  persons  of  their  respective  bodies,  to 
communicate  from  time  to  time,  with  the  said  com- 
mittee." 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  89 

In  supporting  these  resolutions,  Mr.  Carr  made  bis 
debut,  and  a  noble  one  it  is  said  to  have  been.  This 
gentleman,  by  profession  a  lawyer,  had  recently  com- 
menced his  practice  at  the  same  bar  with  Patrick 
Henry;  and  although  he  had  not  yet  reached  the  meri- 
dian of  life,  he  was  considered,  by  far  the  most  formida- 
ble rival  in  forensic  eloquence  that  Mr.  Henry  had  ever 
yet  had  to  encounter.  He  had  the  advantage  of  a  per- 
son at  once  dignified  and  engaging,  and  the  manner  and 
action  of  an  accomplished  gentleman.  His  education 
was  a  finished  one;  his  mind  trained  to  correct  think- 
ing; his  conceptions  quick,  and  clear,  and  strong;  he 
reasoned  with  great  cogency,  and  had  an  imagination 
which  enlightened  beautifully,  without  interrupting  or 
diverting  the  course  of  his  argument.  His  voice  was 
finely  toned,  his  feelings  acute;  his  style  free,  and  rich 
and  various;  his  devotion  to  the  cause  of  liberty,  verg- 
ing on  enthusiasm;  and  his  spirit  firm  and  undaunted, 
beyond  the  possibility  of  being  shaken.  W  ith  what 
delight  the  house  of  burgesses  hailed  this  new  cham- 
pion, and  felicitated  themselves  on  such  an  accession  to 
their  cause,  it  is  easy  to  imagine.  But  what  are  the 
hopes  and  expectations  of  mortals! 

"  Ostendent  terris  hunc  tantum  fata,  neque  ultra. 
"  Esse  sinent — " 

In  two  months  from  the  time  at  which  this  gentleman 
stood  before  the  house  of  burgesses,  in  all  the  pride  of 
health,  and  genius  and  eloquence — he  was  no  more; 
lost  to  his  friends  and  to  his  country,  and  disappointed 
of  sharing  in  that  noble  triumph  which  awaited  the  illus- 
trious band  of  his  compatriots  * 

*  I  cannot  withhold  from  the  reader,  the  following  note  of  this  transaction 
and  of  the  character  of  Mr.  Carr,  fi-om  one  who  knew  him  well,  and  heard 

M 


90  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

Mr.  Carrs  resolutions  were  supported,  successively 
by  Mr.  Henry,  and  Mr.  Richard  Henry  Lee,  with  their 
usual  ability.  The  reader  will  no  doubt  be  gratified  by 
a  short  sketch  of  this  assembly,  as  it  presented  itself  to  a 
gentleman  who  now  saw  it  for  the  first  time,  and  who 
looked  upon  it  with  an  eye  of  taste  and  genius;  the 
writer  who  was  then  in  the  ardour  of  youth,  and  a 
stranger  in  the  colony,  has  since  been  distinguished  by 
holding  and  adorning  some  of  the  highest  offices  of  the 
state. 

"  When  I  first  saw  Mr.  Henry,  which  was  in  March, 
1773,  he  wore  a  peach  blossom  coloured  coat,  and  a 
dark  wig,  which  tied  behind,  and  I  believe  a  bag  to  it. 


this  his  first  and  last  speech  in  the  house  of  representatives.  "  I  well  remem- 
ber the  pleasure  expressed  in  the  countenance  and  conversation  of  the  mem- 
bers ;  generally,  on  this  debut  of  Mr.  Carr  and  the  hopes  they  conceived,  as 
well  from  the  talents  as  the  patriotism  it  manifested.  But  he  died  within 
two  months  after,  and  in  him  we  lost  a  powerful  fellow  labourer.  His  charac- 
ter was  of  a  high  order :  a  spotless  integrity,  sound  judgment,  handsome 
imagination,  enriched  by  education  and  reading,  quick  and  clear  in  his  con- 
ceptions, of  correct  and  ready  elocution,  impressing  every  hearer  with  the 
sincerity  of  the  heart  from  which  it  flowed.  His  firmness  was  inflexible  in 
whatever  he  thought  right:  but  when  no  moral  principle  was  in  the  way, 
never  had  man  more  of  the  milk  of  human  kindness,  of  indulgence,  of  soft- 
ness, of  pleasantry  in  conversation  and  conduct.  The  number  of  his  friends 
and  the  warmth  of  their  affection,  were  proofs  of  his  worth  and  of  their  esti- 
mate of  it.  To  give  to  those  now  living  an  idea  of  the  affliction  produced  by 
his  death,  in  the  minds  of  all  those  who  knew  him,  I  liken  it  to  that  lately- 
felt  by  themselves  on  the  death  of  Ms  eldest  son,  Peter  Carr  ;  so  like  him 
in  all  his  endowments  and  moral  qualities,  and  whose  recollection  can 
never  recur,  without  a  deep  drawn  sigh  from  the  bosom  of  every  one  who 
knew  him."1 

Extract  from  the  Virginia  Gazette  of  29th  May,  1773. 

"  On  Sunday,  the  16th  of  May,  died,  at  Charlotteville.  in  the  30th  year  of 
his  age,  Dabney  Carr,  esquire,  attorney  at  law,  and  member  of  Assembly  for 
the  county  of  Louisa.  This  excellent  person  possessed  a  fine  genius,  and  a 
benevolent  heart,  with  a  taste  for  all  that  was  polite,  elegant  or  social ;  and 
when  occasion  offered,  displayed  a  masculine  eloquence,  and  an  undaunted 
love  of  liberty." 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  91 

as  was  the  fashion  of  the  day.  When  pointed  out  to 
me,  as  the  orator  of  the  assembly,  I  looked  at  him 
with  no  great  prepossession.  On  the  opposite  side 
of  the  house  sat  the  graceful  Pendleton,  and  the  harmo- 
nious Richard  Henry  Lee,  whose  aquiline  nose  and  Ro- 
man profile,  struck  me  much  more  forcibly  than  that  of 
Mr.  Henry,  his  rival  in  eloquence.  The  distance  from 
the  gallery  to  the  chair,  near  which  these  distinguished 
members  sat,  did  not  permit  me  to  have  such  a  view  of 
their  features  and  countenances,  as  to  leave  a  strong  im- 
pression, except  of  Mr.  Lee's,  whose  profile  was  too  re- 
markable not  to  have  been  noticed  at  an  even  greater 
distance.  I  was  then  between  nineteen  and  twenty,  had 
never  heard  a  speech  in  public,  except  from  the  pul- 
pit— had  attached  to  the  idea  I  had  formed  of  an  orator, 
all  the  advantages  of  person  which  Mr.  Pendleton  pos- 
sessed, and  even  more — all  the  advantages  of  voice, 
which  delighted  me  so  much  in  the  speeches  of  Mr. 
Lee — the  fine  polish  of  language,  which  that  gentleman 
united  with  that  harmonious  voice,  so  as  to  make  me 
sometimes  fancy,  that  I  was  listening  to  some  being  in- 
spired with  more  than  mortal  powers  of  embellishment, 
and  all  the  advantages  of  gesture  which  the  celebrated 
Demosthenes  considered  as  the  first,  second,  and  third 
qualifications  of  an  orator.  I  discovered  neither  of 
these  qualifications  in  the  appearance  of  Mr.  Henry,  or 
in  the  few  remarks  I  heard  him  deliver  during  the  ses- 
sion. It  was  at  this  time  that  Mr.  Dabney  Carr  made  a 
motion  for  appointing  a  standing  committee  of  corre- 
spondence with  the  other  colonies.  I  was  not  present 
when  Mr.  Henry  spoke  on  this  question;  but  was  told 
by  some  of  my  fellow-collegians,  that  he  far  exceeded  Mr. 
Lee,  whose  speech  succeeded  the  next  day.  Never 
before  had  I  heard  what  I  thought  oratory;  and  if  his 


92  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

speech  was  excelled  by  Mr.  Henry's,  the  latter  must 
have  been  excellent  indeed.  This  was  the  only  subject 
that  I  recollect,  which  called  forth  the  talents  of  the 
members  during  that  session,  and  there  was  too  much 
unanimity  to  have  elicited  all  the  strength  of  any  one  of 
them." 

My  correspondent  had  an  opportunity  of  seeing  Mr. 
Henry  not  long  afterwards,  when  speaking  on  a  subject 
of  the  highest  moment  to  the  liberties  of  his  country, 
and  of  witnessing  that  almost  supernatural  transforma- 
tion of  appearance,  which  has  been  already  noticed  as 
being  invariably  wrought  by  the  excitement  of  his  ge- 
nius. We  shall  have  his  own  account  of  it  by  and  by; 
and  shall  see,  that  he  no  longer  formed  an  exception  to 
the  voice  of  his  country,  in  assigning  the  palm  of  po- 
pular eloquence  to  this  most  rare  and  extraordinary  fa- 
vourite of  nature. 

It  is  not  improbable,  as  it  has  been  suggested,  that 
the  strongly  marked  distinction  of  ranks  which  prevailed 
in  this  country,  and  the  resentment,  if  not  envy,  with 
which  the  poorer  classes  looked  up  to  the  splendour  and 
ostentation  of  the  landed  aristocracy,  had  a  considera- 
ble agency  in  inflaming  Mr.  Henry's  hostility  to  the  Bri- 
tish court.  He  probably  regarded  the  untitled  nobles 
of  Virginia,  as  a  sort  of  spurious  emanation  from  the 
royal  stock;  connected  them  in  his  resentments,  and 
transferred  from  the  effect  to  the  cause  the  larger  stream 
of  his  indignation.  He  had  a  rooted  aversion  and  even 
abhorrence  to  eveiy  thing  in  the  shape  of  pride,  cru- 
elty, and  tyranny;  and  could  not  tolerate  that  social  in- 
equality from  which  they  proceeded,  and  by  which  they 
were  nourished.  The  principle  which  he  seems  to  have 
brought  with  him  into  the  world,  and  which  certainly 
formed  the  guide  of  all  his  public  actions,  was,  that  the 


LIFE    OP    HENRY.  93 

whole  human  race  was  one  family,  equal  in  their  rights 
and  their  birth-right  liberty. 

The  elements  of  his  character  were  most  happily 
mingled  for  the  great  struggle  which  was  now  coming 
on.  His  views  were  not  less  steady  than  they  were 
bold.  His  vision  pierced  deeply  into  futurity;  and  long 
before  a  whisper  of  independence  had  been  heard  in  this 
land,  he  had  looked  through  the  whole  of  the  approach- 
ing contest,  and  saw,  with  the  eye  and  the  rapture  of  a 
prophet,  his  country  seated  aloft  among  the  nations  of  the 
earth.  A  striking  proof  of  this  prescience,  is  given  in  an 
anecdote  communicated  to  me  by  Mr.  Pope.  These  are 
his  words:  "  I  am  informed  by  col.  John  Overton,  that 
before  one  drop  of  blood  was  shed  in  our  contest  with 
Great  Britain,  he  was  at  col.  Samuel  Overtones,  in  com- 
pany with  Mr.  Henry,  col.  Morris,  John  Hawkins,  and 
col.  Samuel  Overton,  when  the  last  mentioned  gentle- 
man asked  Mr.  Henry,  '  whether  he  supposed  Great 
Britain  would  drive  her  colonies  to  extremities?  And 
if  she  should,  what  he  thought  would  be  the  issue  of  the 
war?'  When  Mr.  Henry,  after  looking  round  to  see 
who  were  present,  expressed  himself  confidentially  to 
the  company  in  the  following  manner.  e  She  ivill 
drive  us  to  extremities — no  accommodation  will  take 
place — hostilities  will  soon  commence — and  a  despe- 
rate and  bloody  touch  it  will  be/  i  But/  said  col. 
Samuel  Overton,  '  do  you  think,  Mr.  Henry,  that  an 
infant  nation  as  we  are,  without  discipline,  arms,  am- 
munition, ships  of  war,  or  money  to  procure  them — 
do  you  think  it  possible,  thus  circumstanced,  to  oppose 
successfully  the  fleets  and  armies  of  Great  Britain?'  '  I 
will  be  candid  with  you/  replied  Mr.  Henry.  '  I  doubt 
whether  we  shall  be  able,  alone,  to  cope  with  so  power- 
ful a  nation.    But/  continued  he,  (rising  from  his  chair 


94  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

with  great  animation,)  '  where  is  France?  Where  is 
Spain?  Where  is  Holland  ?  the  natural  enemies  of 
Great  Britain — Where  will  they  be,  all  this  while?  Do 
you  suppose  they  will  stand  by,  idle  and  indifferent  spec- 
tators of  the  contest?  Will  Louis  the  XVI.  be  asleep 
all  this  time?  Believe  me,  no!  When  Louis  the  XVI. 
shall  be  satisfied  by  our  serious  opposition,  and  our  De- 
claration of  Independence,  that  all  prospect  of  reconci- 
liation is  gone,  then,  and  not  till  then,  will  he  furnish  us 
with  arms,  ammunition,  and  clothing;  and  not  with 
these  only,  but  he  will  send  his  fleets  and  armies  to  fight 
our  battles  for  us;  he  will  form  with  us  a  treaty  offen- 
sive and  defensive,  against  our  unnatural  mother.  Spain 
and  Holland  will  join  the  confederation!  Our  inde- 
pendence will  be  established!  and  we  shall  take  our 
stand  among  the  nations  of  the  earth!'  Here  he  ceased; 
and  col.  John  Overton  says,  he  shall  never  forget  the 
voice  and  prophetic  manner  with  which  these  predic- 
tions were  uttered,  and  which  have  been  since  so  lite- 
rally verified.  Col.  Overton  says,  at  the  word  inde- 
pendence, the  company  appeared  to  be  startled;  for  they 
had  never  heard  any  thing  of  the  kind  before  even  sug- 
gested." 

It  was  anticipated,  that  the  establishment  of  corre- 
sponding committees  would  lead  eventually  to  a  congress 
of  the  colonies,  and  that  measure  was  brought  about  by 
the  following  circumstances. 

The  people  of  Boston  having  thrown  into  the  sea  a 
vessel  load  of  tea,  which  was  attempted  to  be  forced 
upon  them,  were  punished  by  an  act  of  parliament, 
which  shut  up  their  port  from  and  after  the  first  day  of 
June,  1774.  The  house  of  burgesses  Of  Virginia  being 
in  session  when  this  act  arrived,  passed  an  order,  which 
stands  upon  their  journal  in  the  following  terms: 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  95 


"  Tuesday,  the  24th  of  May,  14  Geo.  III.  1774. 

"  This  house  being  .deeply  impressed  with  apprehen- 
sion of  the  great  dangers  to  be  derived  to  British  Ame- 
rica, from  the  hostile  invasion  of  the  city  of  Boston,  in 
our  sister  colony  of  Massachusetts  Bay,  whose  com- 
merce and  harbour  are,  on  the  1st  day  of  June  next,  to 
be  stopped  by  an  armed  force,  deem  it  highly  necessary 
that  the  said  1st  day  of  June  next,  be  set  apart  by  the 
members  of  this  house,  as  a  day  of  fasting,  humiliation, 
and  prayer,  devoutly  to  implore  the  divine  interposition 
for  averting  the  heavy  calamity  which  threatens  destruc- 
tion to  our  civil  rights,  and  the  evils  of  civil  war;  to  give 
us  one  heart  and  one  mind,  firmly  to  oppose,  by  all  just 
and  proper  means,  every  injury  to  American  rights;  and 
that  the  minds  of  his  majesty  and  his  parliament,  may  be 
inspired  from  above  with  wisdom,  moderation,  and  justice, 
to  remove  from  the  loyal  people  of  America  all  cause 
of  danger,  from  a  continued  pursuit  of  measures  preg- 
nant with  their  ruin. 

"  Ordered,  therefore,  That  the  members  of  this  house 
do  attend  in  their  places,  at  the  hour  of  ten  in  the  fore- 
noon, on  the  said  1st  day  of  June  next,  in  order  to  pro- 
ceed with  the  speaker  and  the  mace  to  the  church  in 
this  city,  for  the  purposes  aforesaid;  and  that  the  reverend 
Mr.  Price  be  appointed  to  read  prayers,  and  to  preach 
a  sermon  suitable  to  the  occasion." 

In  consequence  of  this  order,  governor  Dunmore, 
on  the  following  day,  dissolved  the  house,  with  this 
speech: 

"  Mr.  Speaker  and  gentlemen  of  the  house  of  bur- 
gesses: I  have  in  my  hand  a  paper  published  by  order 
of  your  house,  conceived  in  such  terms  as  reflect  highly 


96  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

upon  his  majesty  and  the  parliament  of  Great  Britain, 
which  makes  it  necessary  to  dissolve  you,  and  you  are 
dissolved  accordingly." 

The  members  immediately  wMidrew  to  the  Raleigh 
tavern,  where  they  formed  themselves  into  a  committee 
to  consider  of  the  most  expedient  and  necessaiy  mea- 
sures to  guard  against  the  encroachments  which  so 
glaringly  threatened  them ;  and  immediately  adopted  the 
following  spirited  association. 

"  An  association,  signed  by  89  members  of  the  late 
house  of  burgesses.  We,  his  majesty's  most  dutiful  and 
loyal  subjects,  the  late  representatives  of  the  good  people 
of  this  country,  having  been  deprived,  by  the  sudden  in- 
terposition of  the  executive  part  of  this  government, 
from  giving  our  countrymen  the  advice  we  wished  to 
convey  to  them,  in  a  legislative  capacity,  find  ourselves 
under  the  hard  necessity  of  adopting  this,  the  only  me- 
thod we  have  left,  of  pointing  out  to  our  countrymen, 
such  measures  as,  in  our  opinion,  are  best  fitted  to 
secure  our  dear  rights  and  liberty  from  destruction,  by 
the  heavy  hand  of  power  now  lifted  against  North 
America.  With  much  grief,  we  find  that  our  dutiful 
applications  to  Great  Britain  for  the  security  of  our  just, 
ancient,  and  constitutional  rights,  have  been  not  only 
disregarded,  but  that  a  determined  system  is  formed  and 
pressed,  for  reducing  the  inhabitants  of  British  America 
to  slavery,  by  subjecting  them  to  the  payment  of  taxes, 
imposed  without  the  consent  of  the  people  or  their  re- 
presentatives; and  that,  in  pursuit  of  this  system,  we 
find  an  act  of  the  British  parliament,  lately  passed,  for 
stopping  the  harbour  and  commerce  of  the  town  of 
Boston,  in  our  sister  colony  of  Massachusetts  Bay, 
until  the  people  there  submit  to  the  payment  of  such 
unconstitutional  taxes;  and  which  act  most  violently 


LIFE  OP  HENRY.  97 

and  arbitrarily  deprives  them  of  their  property,  in 
wharves  erected  by  private  persons,  at  their  own  great 
and  proper  expense;  which  act  is,  in  our  opinion,  a  most 
dangerous  attempt  to  destroy  the  constitutional  liberty 
and  rights  of  all  North  America.  It  is  further  our 
opinion,  that  as  tea,  on  its  importation  into  America,  is 
charged  with  a  duty  imposed  by  parliament,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  raising  a  revenue  without  the  consent  of  the 
people,  it  ought  not  to  be  used  by  any  person  who  wishes 
well  to  the  constitutional  rights  and  liberties  of  British 
America.  And  whereas  the  India  company  have  un- 
generously attempted  the  ruin  of  America,  by  sending 
many  ships  loaded  with  tea  into  the  colonies,  thereby 
intending  to  fix  a  precedent  in  favour  of  arbitrary  taxa- 
tion, we  deem  it  highly  proper  and  do  accordingly  re- 
commend it  strongly  to  our  countiymen,  not  to  pur- 
chase or  use  any  kind  of  East  India  commodity  what- 
soever, except  saltpetre  and  spices,  until  the  grievances 
of  America  are  redressed.  We  are  further  clearly  of 
opinion,  that  an  attack  made  on  one  of  our  sister  colo- 
nies, to  compel  submission  to  arbitrary  taxes,  is  an  attack 
made  on  all  British  America,  and  threatens  ruin  to  the 
rights  of  all,  unless  the  united  wisdom  of  the  whole  be 
applied.  And  for  this  purpose  it  is  recommended  to  the 
committee  of  correspondence,  that  they  communicate 
with  tJieir  several  corresponding  committees,  on  the  ex- 
pediency of  appointing  deputies  from  the  several  colo- 
nies of  British  America,  to  meet  in  general  congress,  at 
such  place,  annually,  as  shall  be  thought  most  conve- 
nient; there  to  deliberate  on  those  general  measures  ivhich 
tlie  united  interests  of  America  may,  from  time  to  time, 
require. 

"  A  tender  regard  for  the  interest  of  our  fellow-sub- 
jects, the  merchants  and  manufacturers  of  Great  Bri- 


98  SKETCHES    OF  THE 

tain,  prevents  us  from  going  further  at  this  time;  most 
earnestly  hoping,  that  the  unconstitutional  principle  of 
taxing  the  colonies  without  their  consent  will  not  be 
persisted  in,  thereby  to  compel  us  against  our  will,  to 
avoid  all  commercial  intercourse  with  Britain.  Wish- 
ing them  and  our  people  free  and  happy,  we  are  their 
affectionate  friends,  the  late  representatives  of  Vir- 
ginia. 

"  The  27th  day  of  May,  1774." 

To  give  effect  to  the  recommendation  of  a  congress 
on  the  part  of  this  colony,  delegates  were  shortly  after 
elected  by  the  several  counties,  to  meet  at  Williamsburg, 
on  the  first  of  August  following,  to  consider  further  of 
the  state  of  public  affairs,  and,  more  particularly,  to  ap- 
point deputies  to  the  general  congress,  which  was  to 
be  convened  at  Philadelphia,  on  the  5th  of  September 
following.  The  clear,  firm  and  animated  instructions 
given  by  the  people  of  the  several  counties  to  their 
delegates,  evince  the  thorough  knowledge  of  the  great 
parliamentary  question  which  now  pervaded  the  coun- 
try, and  the  determined  spirit  of  the  colonists  to  resist 
the  claim  of  British  taxation.* 


*  The  following  are  the  instructions  from  the  county  of  Hanover  : 

To  John  Syrne  and  Patrick  Henry,  junior,  esquires. 
Gentlemen, 

You  have  our  thanks  for  your  patriotic,  faithful,  and  spirited  conduct,  in 
the  part  you  acted  in  the  late  assembly,  as  our  burgesses;  and  as  we  are 
greatly  alarmed  at  the  proceedings  of  the  British  parliament  respecting  the 
town  of  Boston,  and  the  province  of  Massachusetts  Bay;  and  as  we  under 
stand  a  meeting  of  delegates  from  all  the  counties  in  this  colony  is  appoint- 
ed to  be  in  Williamsburg  on  the  first  day  of  next  month,  to  deliberate  on 
our  public  affairs,  we  do  hereby  appoint  you,  gentlemen,  our  delegates  ; 
and  we  do  request  you,  then  and  there,  to  meet,  consult,  and  advise,  touch- 
ing such  matters  as  are  most  likely  to  effect  our  deliverance  from  the  evil? 
with  which  our  country  is  threatened. 
The  importance  of  those  things   which  will  offer  themselves  for  your 


LIFE  OP  HENRY.  99 

On  the  first  of  August,  accordingly,  the  first  conven- 
tion of  Virginia  delegates  assembled  in  Williamsburg; 

deliberation  is  exceedingly  great ;  and  when  it  is  considered  that  the  effect 
of  the  measures  you  may  adopt  will  reach  our  latest  posterity,  you  will  ex- 
cuse us  for  giving  you  our  sentiments,  and  pointing  out  some  particulars, 
proper  for  that  plan  of  conduct  we  wish  you  to  observe. 

We  are  free  men ;  we  have  a  right  to  be  so  ;  and  to  enjoy  all  the  privi- 
leges and  immunities  of  our  fellow-subjects  in  England ;  and  while  we  retain 
a  just  sense  of  that  freedom,  and  those  rights  and  privileges  necessary  for  its 
safety  and  security,  we  shall  never  give  up  the  right  of  taxation.  Let  it  suffice 
to  say,  once  for  all,  we  will  never  be  taxed  but  by  our  own  representatives;  this  is  the 
great  badge  of  freedom,  and  British  America  hath  hitherto  been  distinguished 
by  it ;  and  when  we  see  the  British  parliament  trampling  upon  that  right, 
and  acting,  with  determined  resolution  to  destroy  it,  we  would  wish  to  see 
the  united  wisdom  and  fortitude  of  America  collected  for  its  defence. 

The  sphere  of  life  in  which  we  move,  hath  not  afforded  us  lights  sufficient 
to  determine  with  certainty,  concerning  those  things  from  which  the  troubles 
at  Boston  originated.  Whether  the  people  there  were  warranted  by  jus- 
tice, when  they  destroyed  the  tea,  we  know  not ;  but  this  we  know,  that 
the  parliament,  by  their  proceedings,  have  made  us  and  all  North  America 
parties  in  the  present  dispute,  and  deeply  interested  in  the  event  of  it ;  inso- 
much, that  if  our  sister  colony  of  Massachusetts  Bay  is  enslaved,  we  cannot 
long  remain  free. 

Our  minds  are  filled  with  anxiety  when  we  view  the  friendly  regards  of 
our  parent  state  turned  into  enmity  ;  and  those  powers  of  government,  for- 
merly exerted  for  our  aid  and  protection,  formed  into  dangerous  efforts  for 
our  destruction.  We  read  our  intended  doom  in  the  Boston  port  bill,  in 
that  for  altering  the  mode  of  trial  in  criminal  cases,  and  finally  in  the  bill 
for  altering  the  form  of  government  in  the  Massachusetts  Bay.  These  several 
acts  are  replete  with  injustice  and  oppression,  and  strongly  expressive  of  the 
future  policy  of  Britain  towards  all  her  colonies ;  if  a  full  and  uncontrouled 
operation  is  given  to  this  detestable  system  in  its  earlier  stages,  it  will  pro- 
bably be  fixed  upon  us  for  ever. 

Let  it,  therefore,  be  your  great  object  to  obtain  a  speedy  repeal  of  those 
acts ;  and  for  this  purpose  we  recommend  the  adoption  of  such  measures  as 
may  produce  the  hearty  union  of  all  our  countrymen  and  sister  colonies 

UNITED  WE  STAND,  DIVIDED  WE  FALL. 

To  attain  this  wished-for  union,  we  declare  our  readiness  to  sacrifice  any 
lesser  interest  arising  from  a  soil,  climate,  situation,  or  productions  peculiar 
to  us. 

We  judge  it  conducive  to  the  interests  of  America,  that  a  general  con- 
gress of  deputies  from  all  the  colonies  be  held,  in  order  to  form  a  plan  for 
guarding  the  claim  of  the  colonists,  and  their  constitutional  rights,  from 
future  encroachment,  and  for  the  speedy  relief  of  our  suffering  brethren  at 
Boston.  For  the  present,  we  think  it  proper  to  form  a  general  association 
against  the  purchase  of  all  articles  of  goods  imported  from  Great  Britain: 


100  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

and  gave  a  new  proof  of  the  invincible  energy  by  which 
they  were  actuated,  in  a  series  of  resolutions,  whereby 
they  pledged  themselves  to  make  common  cause  with 
the  people  of  Boston,  in  every  extremity;  and  broke  off 
all  commercial  connexion  with  the  mother  country,  until 
the  grievances  of  which  they  complained  should  be  re- 
dressed. By  their  last  resolution  they  empowered  their 
moderator,  Mr.  Peyton  Randolph,  or  in  case  of  his 
death,  Robert  C.  Nicholas,  esquire,  on  any  future  oc- 

except  negroes'  cloths,  salt,  saltpetre,  powder,  lead,  utensils  and  implements 
for  handy  craftsmen  and  manufacturers,  which  cannot  be  had  in  America ; 
books,  paper,  and  the  like  necessaries  ;  and  not  to  purchase  any  goods  or 
merchandize  that  shall  be  imported  from  Great  Britain,  after  a  certain  day 
that  may  be  agreed  on  for  that  purpose,  by  the  said  general  meeting  of  depu- 
ties at  Williamsburg,  except  the  articles  aforesaid,  or  such  as  shall  be  allow- 
ed to  be  imported  by  the  said  meeting;  and  that  we  will  encourage  the  manu- 
factures of  America  by  every  means  in  our  power.  A  regard  to  justice 
hinders  us  at  this  time  from  withholding  our  exports  ;  nothing  but  the  direct 
necessity  shall  induce  us  to  adopt  that  proceeding,  which  we  shall  strive  to 
avoid  as  long  as  possible. 

The  African  trade  for  slaves,  we  consider  as  most  dangerous  to  the  virtue 
and  welfare  of  this  country ;  we  therefore  most  earnestly  wish  to  see  it 
totally  discouraged. 

A  steady  loyalty  to  the  kings  of  England  has  ever  distinguished  our  country; 
the  present  state  of  things  here,  as  well  as  the  many  instances  of  it  to  be 
found  in  our  history,  leave  no  room  to  doubt  it.  God  grant  that  we  may 
never  see  the  time  when  that  loyalty  shall  be  found  incompatible  with  the 
rights  of  freemen.  Our  most  ardent  desire  is,  that  we  and  our  latest  posterity, 
may  continue  to  live  under  the  genuine,  unaltered  constitution  of  England, 
and  be  subjects  in  the  true  spirit  of  that  constitution,  to  his  majesty,  and  his 
illustrious  house  ;  and  may  the  wretches  who  affirm  that  we  desire  the  con- 
trary, feel  the  punishment  due  to  falsehood  and  villany. 

While  prudence  and  moderation  shall  guide  your  councils,  we  trust,  gen- 
tlemen, that  firmness,  resolution,  and  zeal,  will  animate  you  in  the  glorious 
struggle.  The  arm  of  power,  which  is  now  stretched  forth  against  us,  is  in- 
deed formidable ;  but  we  do  not  despair.  Our  cause  is  good ;  and  if  it  is 
served  with  constancy  and  fidelity,  it  cannot  fail  of  success.  We  promise 
you  our  best  support,  and  we  will  heartily  join  in  such  measures  as  a  majority 
of  our  countrymen  shall  adopt,  for  securing  the  pub  he  liberty. 

Resolved,  that  the  above  address  be  transmitted  to  the  printers,  to  be  pub- 
lished in  the  gazettes 

Wimiam  Poxlabb,  Clerk. 


LIFE   OF   HENRY.  101 

casion  that  might  in  his  opinion  require  it,  to  convene 
the  several  delegates  of  the  colony,  at  such  time  and 
place  as  he  might  judge  proper. 

They  then  appointed  as  deputies  to  congress  on  the 
part  of  this  colony,  Messrs.  Peyton  Randolph,  Richard 
H.  Lee,  George  Washington,  Patrick  Henry,  Richard 
Bland,  Benjamin  Harrison,  and  Edmund  Pendleton, 
and  furnished  them  with  the  following  firm  and  spirited 
letter  of  instructions. 

"  Instructions  for  the  deputies  appointed  to  meet  in 
general  congress,  on  the  part  of  the  colony  of  Virginia. 

"  The  unhappy  disputes  between  Great  Britain  and 
her  American  colonies,  which  began  about  the  third 
year  of  the  reign  of  his  present  majesty,  and  since  con- 
tinually increasing,  have  proceeded  to  lengths  so  dan- 
gerous and  alarming,  as  to  excite  just  apprehensions  in 
the  minds  of  his  majesty^s  faithful  subjects  of  the  colony, 
that  they  are  in  danger  of  being  deprived  of  their  na- 
tural, ancient,  constitutional,  and  chartered  rights,  have 
compelled  them  to  take  the  same  into  their  most  se- 
rious consideration;  and,  being  deprived  of  their  usual 
and  accustomed  mode  of  making  known  their  griev- 
ances, have  appointed  us  their  representatives,  to  con- 
sider what  is  proper  to  be  done  in  this  dangerous  crisis 
of  American  affairs.  It  being  our  opinion  that  the 
united  wisdom  of  North  America  should  be  collected  in 
a  general  congress  of  all  the  colonies,  we  have  appoint- 
ed the  honourable  Peyton  Randolph,  esq.  Richard  Hen- 
ry Lee,  George  Washington,  Patrick  Hemy,  Richard 
Bland,  Benjamin  Harrison,  and  Edmund  Pendleton, 
esquires,  deputies  to  represent  this  colony  in  the  said 
congress,  to  be  held  at  Philadelphia  on  the  first  Monday 
in  September  next.    And  that  they  may  be  the  better 


102  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

informed  of  our  sentiments  touching  the  conduct  we 
wish  them  to  observe  on  this  important  occasion,  we  de- 
sire that  they  will  express,  in  the  first  place,  our  faith 
and  true  allegiance  to  his  majesty  king  George  the  third, 
our  lawful  and  rightful  sovereign;  and  that  we  are  de- 
termined, with  our  lives  and  fortunes,  to  support  him  in 
the  legal  exercise  of  all  his  just  rights  and  prerogatives. 
And,  however  misrepresented,  we  sincerely  approve  of 
a  constitutional  connexion  with  Great  Britain,  and  wish 
most  ardently  a  return  of  that  intercourse  of  affection 
and  commercial  connexion  that  formerly  united  both 
countries;  which  can  only  be  effected  by  a  removal  of 
those  causes  of  discontent  which  have  of  late  unhap- 
pily divided  us. 

"  It  cannot  admit  of  a  doubt,  but  that  British  sub- 
jects in  America  are  entitled  to  the  same  rights  and  pri- 
vileges as  their  fellow-subjects  possess  in  Britain;  and 
therefore,  that  the  power  assumed  by  the  British  par- 
liament to  bind  America  by  their  statutes,  in  all  cases 
whatsoever,  is  unconstitutional,  and  the  source  of  these 
unhappy  differences. 

"  The  end  of  government  would  be  defeated;  by  the 
British  parliament  exercising  a  power  over  the  lives, 
the  property,  and  the  liberty  of  American  subjects, 
who  are  not,  and  from  their  local  circumstances  can- 
not, be  there  represented.  Of  this  nature  we  consider 
the  several  acts  of  parliament  for  raising  a  revenue  in 
America,  for  extending  the  jurisdiction  of  the  courts  of 
admiralty,  for  seizing  American  subjects,  and  transport- 
ing them  to  Britain,  to  be  tried  for  crimes  committed  in 
America,  and  the  several  late  oppressive  acts  respect- 
ing the  town  of  Boston,  and  province  of  Massachu- 
setts Bay. 

"  The  original  constitution  of  the  American  colonies. 


LIFE  OP  HENRY.  103 

possessing  their  assemblies  with  the  sole  right  of  di- 
recting their  internal  polity,  it  is  absolutely  destructive 
of  the  end  of  their  institution,  that  their  legislatures 
should  be  suspended,  or  prevented,  by  hasty  dissolu- 
tions, from  exercising  their  legislative  powers. 

"  Wanting  the  protection  of  Britain,  we  have  long 
acquiesced  in  their  acts  of  navigation,  restrictive  of  our 
commerce,  which  we  consider  as  an  ample  recompense 
for  such  protection;  but  as  those  acts  derive  their  effi- 
cacy from  that  foundation  alone,  we  have  reason  to  ex- 
pect they  will  be  restrained,  so  as  to  produce  the  rea- 
sonable purposes  of  Britain,  and  not  be  injurious  to  us. 

"  To  obtain  redress  of  thess  grievances,  without 
Which  the  people  of  America  can  neither  be  safe,  free, 
nor  happy,  they  are  willing  to  undergo  the  great  incon- 
venience that  will  be  derived  to  them,  from  stopping  all 
imports  whatsoever  from  Great  Britain,  after  the  first 
day  of  November  next,  and  also  to  cease  exporting  any 
commodity  whatsoever  to  the  same  place,  after  the  10th 
day  of  August,  1775.  The  earnest  desire  we  have  to 
make  as  quick  and  full  payment  as  possible  of  our  debts 
to  Great  Britain,  and  to  avoid  the  heavy  injury  that 
would  arise  to  this  country,  from  an  earlier  adoption  of 
the  non-exportation  plan,  after  the  people  have  already 
applied  so  much  of  their  labour  to  the  perfecting  of  the 
present  crop,  by  which  means  they  have  been  prevented 
from  pursuing  other  methods  of  clothing  and  support- 
ing their  families,  have  rendered  it  necessary  to  restrain 
you  in  this  article  of  non-exportation;  but  it  is  our  de- 
sire that  you  cordially  co-operate  with  our  sister  colo- 
nies in  general  congress,  in  such  other  just  and  proper 
methods  as  they,  or  the  majority,  shall  deem  necessary 
for  the  accomplishment  of  these  valuable  ends. 

"  The  proclamation  issued  by  general  Gage,  in  the 


104  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

government  of  the  province  of  the  Massachusetts  Bay. 
declaring  it  treason  for  the  inhabitants  of  that  province 
to  assemble  themselves  to  consider  of  their  grievances, 
and  form  associations  for  their  common  conduct  on 
the  occasion,  and  requiring  the  civil  magistrates  and 
officers  to  apprehend  all  such  persons  to  be  tried  for 
their  supposed  offences,  is  the  most  alarming  process 
that  ever  appeared  in  a  British  government;  the  said 
general  Gage  has  thereby,  assumed  and  taken  upon 
himself,  powers  denied  by  the  constitution  to  our  legal 
sovereign;  he  not  having  condescended  to  disclose  by 
what  authority  he  exercises  such  extensive  and  unheard 
of  powers,  we  are  at'  a  loss  to  determine  whether  he 
intends  to  justify  himself  as  the  representative  of  the 
king;  or  as  the  commander  in  chief  of  his  majesty's 
forces  in  America.  If  he  considers  himself  as  acting 
in  the  character  of  his  majesty's  representative,  we 
would  remind  him  that  the  statute  25th  Edward  III. 
has  expressed  and  defined  all  treasonable  offences,  and 
that  the  legislature  of  Great  Britain  hath  declared  that 
no  offence  shall  be  construed  to  be  treason,  but  such 
as  is  pointed  out  by  that  statute ;  and  that  this  was  done 
to  take  out  of  the  hands  of  tyrannical  kings,  and  of  weak 
and  wicked  ministers,  that  deadly  weapon  which  con- 
structive treason  had  furnished  them  with,  and  which 
had  drawn  the  blood  of  the  best  and  honestest  men  in 
the  kingdom ;  and  that  the  king  of  Great  Britain  hath 
no  right  by  his  proclamation  to  subject  his  people  to  im- 
prisonment, pains,  and  penalties. 

"  That  if  the  said  general  Gage  conceives  he  is  em- 
powered to  act  in  this  manner,  as  the  commander  in 
chief  of  his  majesty's  forces  in  America,  this  odious 
and  illegal  proclamation  must  be  considered  as  a  plain 
and  full  declaration  that  this  despotic  viceroy  will  be 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  105 

bound  by  no  law,  nor  regard  the  constitutional  rights 
of  his  majesty's  subjects,  whenever  they  interfere  with 
the  plan  he  has  formed  for  oppressing  the  good  people 
of  the  Massachusetts  Bay;  and  therefore,  that  the  exe- 
cuting or  attempting  to  execute,  such  proclamation,  will 
justify  resistance  and  reprisal." 

On  the  fourth  of  September  1774,  that  venerable 
body,  the  old  continental  congress  of  the  United  States, 
(towards  whom  eveiy  American  heart  will  bow  with 
pious  homage,  while  the  name  of  liberty  shall  be  dear 
in  our  land)  met  for  the  first  time,  at  Carpenter's  Hall, 
in  the  city  of  Philadelphia.  Peyton  Randolph,  of  Vir- 
ginia, was  chosen  president,  and  the  house  was  organiz- 
ed for  business,  with  all  the  solemnities  of  a  regular 
legislature* 

The  most  eminent  men  of  the  various  colonies,  were 
now  for  the  first  time,  brought  together.  They  were 
known  to  each  other  Jby  fame ;  but  they  were  personally 
strangers.  The  meeting  was  awfully  solemn.  The 
object  which  had  called  them  together,  was  of  incalcul- 
able magnitude.  The  liberties  of  no  less  than  three 
millions  of  people,  with  that  of  all  their  posterity,  were 
staked  on  the  wisdom  and  energy  of  their  councils. 

*  Sallust,  in  liis  second  oration  to  C  C^sar,  De  Reptiblica  Ordinanda,  gives 
a  short  and  animated  picture  of  their  Roman  ancestors,  which,  with  the 
change  of  a  single  word,  {libertate  for  imperio)  describes  so  happily  our  old 
continental  congress,  that  I  am  sure  I  shall  gratify  the  classical  reader  by  its 
insertion. 

"  Itaque  majores  nostri,  cum  bellis  asperimis  premerentur,  equis,  viris, 
pecunia  amissa,  nunquam  defessi  sunt  armati  de  libertate  contendere.  JVon 
inopia  cerarii,  non  vis  hostium,  non  adversa  res,  ingeniem  eorum  aniinum  subsgit  ; 
f/uem,  quae  virtute  cepercmt,  simul  cum  anima  retinerent.  Atque  ea,  magis 
fortibus  consiliis,  quam  bonis  prjcliis,  patrata  sunt.  Quippe  apud  iihs,  una 
respiiblica  erat;  ei  considebant;  /actio,  contra  hostes  parabatur;  corpus  atque  in- 
genimn,patria,  non  suae,  quisque  potentice  exercitabat." 

O 


106  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

No  wonder,  then,  at  the  long  and  deep  silence  which 
is  said  to  have  followed  upon  their  organization:  at  the 
anxiety  with  which  the  members  looked  around  upon 
each  other:  and  the  reluctance  which  every  individual 
felt  to  open  a  business  so  fearfully  momentous.  In  the 
midst  of  this  deep  and  death-like  silence,  and  just 
when  it  was  beginning  to  become  painfully  embarrass- 
ing, Mr.  Henry  arose  slowly,  as  if  borne  down  by  the 
weight  of  the  subject.  After  faultering,  according  to 
his  habit,  through  a  most  impressive  exordium,  in  which 
he  merely  echoed  back  the  consciousness  of  every 
other  heart,  in  deploring  his  inability  to  do  justice  to 
the  occasion,  he  launched  gradually,  into  a  recital  of 
the  colonial  wrongs.  Rising,  as  he  advanced,  with  the 
grandeur  of  his  subject,  and  glowing  at  length,  with  all 
the  majesty  and  expectation  of  the  occasion,  his  speech 
seemed  more  than  that  of  mortal  man.  Even  those 
who  had  heard  him  in  all  his  glory,  in  the  house  of 
burgesses  of  Virginia,  were  astonished  at  the  manner 
in  which  his  talents  seemed  to  swell  and  expand  them- 
selves, to  fill  the  vaster  theatre  in  which  he  was  now 
placed.  There  was  no  rant — no  rhapsody — no  labour  of 
the  understanding — no  straining  of  the  voice — no  confu- 
sion of  the  utterance.  His  countenance  was  erect — his 
eye  steady— his  action,  noble — his  enunciation  clear  and 
firm — his  mind  poised  on  its  centre — his  views  of  his 
subject  comprehensive  and  great — and  his  imagination, 
corruscating  with  a  magnificence  and  a  variety,  which 
struck  even  that  assembly  with  amazement  and  awe. 
He  sat  down  amidst  murmurs  of  astonishment  and 
applause;  and  as  he  had  been  before  proclaimed  the 
greatest  orator  of  Virginia,  he  was  now,  on  eveiy  hand, 
admitted  to  be  the  first  orator  of  America. 

He  was  followed  by  Mr.  Richard  Henry  Lee,  who 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  107 

charmed  the  house  with  a  different  kind  of  eloquence — 
chaste — classical — beautiful — his  polished  periods  roll- 
ing along  without  effort,  filling  the  ear  with  the  most 
bewitching  harmony,  and  delighting  the  mind  with  the 
most  exquisite  imagery.  The  cultivated  graces  of  Mr. 
Lee^s  rhetoric  received  and  at  the  same  time  reflected 
beauty,  by  their  contrast  with  the  wild  and  grand  effu- 
sions of  Mr.  Henry.  Just  as  those  noble  monuments  of 
art  which  lie  scattered  through  the  celebrated  landscape 
of  Naples,  at  once  adorn,  and  are  in  their  turn  adorned 
by  the  surrounding  majesty  of  nature. 

Two  models  of  eloquence,  each  so  perfect  in  its  kind, 
and  so  finely  contrasted,  could  not  but  fill  the  house 
with  the  highest  admiration;  and  as  Mr.  Henry  had  be- 
fore been  pronounced  the  Demosthenes,  it  was  con- 
ceded on  every  hand,  that  Mr.  Lee  was  the  Cicero  of 
America. 


108  SKETCHES  OF  THE 


SECTION  IV. 

It  is  due  however  to  historic  truth,  to  record,  that 
the  superior  powers  of  these  great  men  were  manifested 
only  in  debate.  On  the  floor  of  the  house,  and  during 
the  first  days  of  the  session,  while  general  grievances 
were  the  topic,  they  took  the  undisputed  lead  in  the 
assembly,  and  were  confessedly,  primi  inter  pares.  But 
when  called  down  from  the  heights  of  declamation,  to 
that  severer  test  of  intellectual  excellence,  the  details 
of  business,  they  found  themselves  in  a  body  of  cool- 
headed,  reflecting,  and  most  able  men,  by  whom,  they 
were  in  their  turn,  completely  thrown  into  the 
shade. 

A  petition  to  the  king,  an  address  to  the  people  of 
Great  Britain,  and  a  memorial  to  the  people  of  British 
America,  were  agreed  to  be  drawn.  Mr.  Lee,  Mr. 
Henry  and  others,  were  appointed  for  the  first;  Mr. 
Lee,  Mr.  Livingston  and  Mr.  Jay,  for  the  two  last.  The 
splendour  of  their  debut,  occasioned  Mr.  Henry  to  be 
designated  by  his  committee,  to  draw  the  petition  to  the 
king,  with  which  they  were  charged;  and  Mr.  Lee  was 
charged  with  the  address  to  the  people  of  England. 
The  last  was  first  reported.  On  reading  it,  great  dis- 
appointment was  expressed  in  every  countenance,  and 
a  dead  silence  ensued  for  some  minutes.  At  length  it 
was  laid  on  the  table,  for  perusal  and  consideration,  till 
the  next  day:  when  first  one  member  and  then  another 
arose,  and  paying  some  faint  compliment  to  the  compo- 
sition, observed  that  there  were  still  certain  considera- 
tions not  expressed,  which  should  properly  find  a  place 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  109 

in  it.  The  address  was,  therefore,  committed  for 
amendment;  and  one  prepared  by  Mr.  Jay,  and  offered 
by  governor  Livingston,  was  reported  and  adopted,  with 
scarcely  an  alteration.  These  facts  are  stated  by  a  gen- 
tleman to  whom  they  were  communicated  by  Mr.  Pen- 
dleton and  Mr.  Harrison,  of  the  Virginia  delegation,  (ex- 
cept that  Mr.  Harrison  erroneously  ascribed  the  draught: 
to  governor  Livingston,)  and  to  whom  they  were  after- 
wards confirmed  by  governor  Livingston  himself.  Mr. 
Henry's  draught  of  a  petition  to  the  king  was  equally 
unsuccessful,  and  was  recommitted  for  amendment. 
Mr.  John  Dickinson  (the  author  of  the  Farmer's  letters) 
was  added  to  the  committee,  and  a  new  draught  prepar- 
ed by  him  was  adopted.* 

This  is  one  of  those  incidents  in  the  life  of  Mr.  Henry 
to  which  an  allusion  was  made  in  a  former  page,  when 
it  was  observed,  that  notwithstanding  the  wonderful 
gifts  which  he  had  derived  from  nature,  he  lived  himself, 
to  deplore  his  early  neglect  of  literature.  But  for  this 
neglect,  that  imperishable  trophy  won  by  the  pen  of  Mr. 
John  Dickinson  would  have  been  his;  and  the  fame  of 
his  genius,  instead  of  resting  on  tradition,  or  the  short- 
lived report  of  his  present  biographer,  would  have 
flourished  on  the  immortal  page  of  the  American  his- 
tory. 

It  is  a  trite  remark,  that  the  talents  for  speaking  and 


*  The  late  governor  Tyler,  a  warm  friend  of  Mr.  Henry's,  used  to  relate  an 
anecdote  in  strict  accordance  with  this  statement :  it  was,  that  after  these 
two  gentlemen  had  made  their  first  speeches,  Mr.  Chase,  a  delegate  from 
Maryland,  walked  across  the  house  to  the  seat  of  his  colleague,  and  said  to 
him,  in  an  under  voice — "  We  might  as  well  go  home ;  we  are  not  able  to 
legislate  with  these  men."  But  that  after  the  house  came  to  descend  to  de- 
tails, the  same  Mr.  Chase  was  heard  to  remark,  "  Well,  after  all,  I 
find  these  are  but  men — and  in  mere  matters  of  business,  but  very  common 
men."  ■ 


110  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

for  writing  eminently,  are  very  rarely  found  united  in 
the  same  individual;  and  the  rarity  of  the  occurrence 
has  led  to  an  opinion,  that  those  talents  depend  on  con- 
stitutions of  mind  so  widely  different,  as  to  render  their 
union  almost  wholly  unattainable.  This  was  not  the 
opinion,  however,  it  is  believed,  at  Athens  and  at  Rome: 
it  cannot  I  apprehend,  be  the  opinion,  either,  in  the 
united  kingdom  of  Great  Britain.  There  have  been, 
indeed,  in  these  countries  distinguished  orators,  who 
have  not  left  behind  them  any  proofs  of  their  eminence 
in  composition;  but  neither  have  they  left  behind  them 
any  proofs  of  their  failure  in  this  respect;  so  that 
the  conclusion  of  their  incompetency  is  rather  as- 
sumed than  established.  On  the  other  hand,  there 
have  been,  in  all  those  countries,  too  many  illustrious 
examples  of  the  union  of  those  talents,  to  justify 
the  belief  of  their  incongruity  by  any  general  law  of 
nature. 

That  there  have  been  many  eminent  writers  who, 
from  physical  defects,  could  never  have  become  orators, 
is  very  certain:  but  is  the  converse  of  the  proposition 
equally  true  ?  Was  there  ever  an  eminent  orator  who 
might  not,  by  proper  discipline,  have  become,  also,  a 
very  eminent  writer?  What  are  the  essential  qualities  of 
the  orator?  Are  they  not  judgment,  invention,  imagina- 
tion, sensibility,  taste  and  expression,  or  the  command 
of  strong  and  appropriate  language?  If  these  be  the 
qualities  of  the  orator,  it  is  very  easy  to  understand  how 
they  may  be  improved  by  the  discipline  of  the  closet;* 
but  not  so  easy  to  comprehend  how  they  can  possibly  be 
injured  by  it.     Is  there  any  danger  that  this  discipline 


*  Nulla  enim  res  tantum  ad  dicendum  proficit,  quantum  scriptio.— Cic. 
Biiur.  xxiv.  92. 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  1  1 1 

will  tame  too  much  the  fiery  spirit,  the  enchanting  wild- 
ness  and  magnificent  irregularity  of  the  orator's  ge- 
nius? The  example  of  Demosthenes  alone,  is  a  suffi- 
cient answer  to  this  question;  and  the  reader  will,  at 
once,  recal  numerous  other  examples,  corroborative  of 
the  same  truth,  both  in  ancient  and  modern  times.  The 
truth  seems  to  be,  that  this  rare  union  of  talents  results 
not  from  any  incongruity  in  their  nature,  but  from  de- 
fective education,  taking  this  word  in  its  larger,  Roman 
sense.  If  the  genius  of  the  orator,  has  been  properly 
trained  in  his  youth  to  both  pursuits,  instead  of  being 
injured,  it  will,  I  apprehend,  be  found  to  derive  addi- 
tional grace,  beauty,  and  even  sublimity,  from  the  dis- 
cipline. His  flights  will  be  at  least  as  bold — they  will 
be  better  sustained — and  whether  he  chooses  to  descend 
in  majestic  circles,  or  to  stoop  on  headlong  wing,  his 
performance  will  not  be  the  worse  for  having  been 
taught  to  fly. 

For  Mr.  Henry  and  for  the  world,  it  happened  un- 
fortunately, that  instead  of  the  advantage  of  this  Roman 
education,  of  which  we  have  spoken,  the  years  of  his 
youth  had  been  wasted  in  idleness.  He  had  become 
celebrated  as  an  orator  before  he  had  learned  to  com- 
pose; and  it  is  not  therefore  wonderful,  that  when  with- 
drawn from  the  kindling  presence  of  the  crowd,  he 
was  called  upon  for  the  first  time  to  take  the  pen, 
all  the  spirit  and  flame  of  his  genius  were  extin- 
guished.* 

*  On  this  subject,  of  the  rare  union  of  the  talents  of  speaking-  and  writing: 
in  the  same  man,  Cicero  has  a  parallel  between  Galba  and  Lxlius,  which  is 
not  less  just  than  it  is  beautiful.  After  having1  spoken  of  Galba,  as  one  of  those 
men  of  great  but  less  cultivated  natural  powers,  who  were  afraid  of  lowering 
the  fame  of  their  eloquence  by  submitting  their  writings  to  the  world,  he 
proceeds  thus: — "  Quern  ( Galbam)  fortasse  vis  non  ingenii  solum,  sed  eliam 
animitet  naturalis  quiUam  dolor  dicentem  incendcbat,  ejfecicbaique,  ut  et  tacitatu, 


112  SKETCHES    OP   THE 

But  while,  with  reference  to  his  own  fame  and  the 
lasting  benefits  which  he  might  have  conferred  on  the 
world,  we  lament  his  want  of  literary  discipline,  it  is 

et  gravis,  et  vehemens  esset  oratio :  dein,  cum  otiosus  stilum  prehenderat,  motus- 
que  omnia  animi,  tamjuam  ventus,  hominem  defecerat,  Jlucessebat  oraiiu  :  quod  Us, 
qui  limatius  dicendi  consectantur  genus,  accidere  non  solet,propterea  quod  pruden- 
tia  nunquam  deficit  orutorem,  qua  Me  uteris,  eodemmodo  possit  et  dicere  et  scribere  ; 
ardor  animi  non  semper  adest,  isque  cum  consedil,  omnis  ilia  vis  et  quasi  fiamma 
oraioiis  extinguitur.     Mane  igitur  ob  causam,  videtur  Lcelii  mens  spirare  etium  in 
scriptis,  Galbce  autem,visoccidisse."'BviVTvs,xidv.93.  There  seems  to  have  been 
a  strong  resemblance  between  the  structure  of  Galba's  eloquence  and  charac- 
ter, and  those  of  Mr.  Henry.  In  their  habits  however,  there  was  this  striking 
difference  ;  that  Galba's  preparation  for  speaking  was  always  most  elaborate  ; 
Mr.  Henry's,  generally,  none  at  all.    On  this  head,  of  Galba's  anxious  prepara- 
tion, Cicero  gives  us  a  very  interesting  anecdote.    Lselius,  it  seems,  was  en- 
gaged in  a  great  cause,  in  which  he  spoke  with  the  peculiar  elegance  which 
always  distinguished  him ;  but  not  having  succeeded  in  convincing  his  judges, 
the  case  was  adjourned  to  another  day,  and  a  new  argument  was  called  for. 
Lselius  again  appeared,  and  surpassed  his  former  exertions,  but  with  the 
same  result,  of  another  adjournment  and  a  call  for  re -argument.     His  clients 
attended  him  to  his  house  on  the  rising  of  the  court,  expressed  their  grati- 
tude in  the  strongest  terms,  and  begged  that  he  would  not  permit  himself 
to  be  wearied  into  a  desertion  of  them.     To  this  JL<elius  answered,  that  what 
he  had  done  for  the  support  of  the  cause,  had,  indeed,  been  diligently  and 
accurately  performed ;  but  he  was  satisfied  that  that  cause  could  be  better 
defended  by  the  more  bold  and  vehement  eloquence  of  Galba.     Galba  was 
accordingly  applied  to;  but  was,  at  first,  startled  at  the  idea  of  succeeding 
such  an  orator  as  Laelius,  in  any  cause  :  more  especially,  on  the  short  time  for 
preparation  that  was  then  allowed  him.     He  yielded,  however,  to  their  im- 
portunities; and  employed  the  whole  of  the  intermediate  day  and  the  morn- 
ing of  that  in  which  the  court  was  to  sit,  in  studying  and  annotating,  with  the 
help  of  his  amanuenses.     When  the  hour  of  court  arrived,  his  clients  called 
for  him,  and  Galba  came  out,  "  with  that  complexion  and  those  eyes,"  says 
Cicero, "  which  would  have  led  you  to  suppose  that  he  had  been  engaged  in 
pleading  a  cause,  and  not  in  studying  it."     Whence  it  appears  that  Galba 
was  not  less  vehement  and  inflamed  in  meditating,  than  in  the  act  of  deliver- 
ing a  speech.     His  success  was  proportioned  to  his  preparation.    "  In  the 
midst  of  the  greatest  expectation,  surrounded  by  a  vast  concourse  of  hearers, 
before  Ljelius  himself,  he  plead  the  cause  with  so  much  force  and  so  much 
power,  that  no  part  of  his  speech  passed  without  applause,  and  his  clients 
were  discharged,  with  the  approbation  of  every  one."    What  an  impression 
does  this  give  us  of  the  magnanimity  of  Lxlius,  as  well  as  the  abilities  of 
Galba !     Mr.  Henry  would  not  have  taken  the  trouble  of  Galba's  prepara- 
tion ;  but  he  would  have  gained  the  cause,  if  human  abilities  could  have 
gained  it. 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  11 


a 


not  impossible  that,  for  the  times  in  which  he  lived,  and 
for  the  more  immediate  purpose  of  the  American  revo- 
lution, the  popular  opinion  may  be  correct.  The  peo- 
ple seem  to  have  admired  him  the  more  for  his  want  of 
discipline.  "  His  genius/'  they  say,  "  was  unbroken, 
and  too  full  of  fire  to  bear  the  curb  of  composition.  He 
delighted  to  swim  the  flood,  to  breast  the  torrent,  and  to 
scale  the  mountain:  and  supported  as  he  was,  in  all  pub- 
lic bodies,  by  masters  of  the  pen,  they  insist,  that  it  was 
even  fortunate  for  the  revolution,  that  his  genius  was 
left  at  large,  to  revel  in  all  the  wildness  and  boldness  of 
nature;  that  it  enabled  him  to  infuse,  more  successfully, 
his  own  intrepid  spirit  into  the  measures  of  the  revolu- 
tion; that  it  rendered  his  courage  more  contagious,  and 
enabled  him  to  achieve,  by  a  kind  of  happy  rashness, 
what  perhaps,  had  been  lost  by  a  better  regulated 
mind." 

But,  to  resume  our  narrative:  congress  rose  in  Octo- 
ber, and  Mr.  Henry  returned  to  his  native  county. 
Here,  as  was  natural,  he  was  surrounded  by  his  neigh- 
bours, who  were  eager  to  hear  not  only  what  had  been 
done,  but  what  kind  of  men  had  composed  that  illus- 
trious body.  He  answered  their  enquiries  with  all  his 
wonted  kindness  and  candour;  and  having  been  asked 
by  one  of  them,  "  whom  he  thought  the  greatest  man  in 
congress,"  he  replied — "  If  you  speak  of  eloquence, 
Mr.  Rutledge  of  South  Carolina,  is  by  far  the  greatest 
orator;  but  if  you  speak  of  solid  information  and  sound 
judgment,  colonel  Washington,  is  unquestionably,  the 
greatest  man  on  that  floor."  Such  was  the  penetration 
which,  at  that  early  period  of  Mr.  Washington's  life, 
could  pierce  through  his  retiring  modesty  and  habitual 
reserve;  and  estimate  so  correctly,  the  unrivalled  worth 
of  his  character. 


114  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

On  Monday,  the  20th  of  March,  1775,  the  conven- 
tion of  delegates  from  the  several  counties  and  corpo- 
rations of  Virginia,  met  for  the  second  time.  This  as- 
sembly was  held  in  the  old  church  in  the  town  of  Rich- 
mond. Mr.  Henry  was  a  member  of  that  body  also. 
The  reader  will  bear  in  mind  the  tone  of  the  instruc- 
tions given  by  the  convention  of  the  preceding  year  to 
their  deputies  in  congress.  He  will  remember,  that 
while  they  recite  with  great  feeling,  the  series  of  griev- 
ances under  which  the  colonies  had  laboured,  and  in- 
sist with  firmness  on  their  constitutional  rights,  the) 
give  nevertheless,  the  most  explicit  and  solemn  pledge 
of  their  faith  and  true  allegiance  to  his  majesty  king 
George  the  HI.  and  avow  their  determination  to  sup- 
port him  with  their  lives  and  fortunes,  in  the  legal  ex- 
ercise of  all  his  just  rights  and  prerogatives.  He  will 
remember,  that  these  instructions  contain,  also,  an  ex- 
pression of  their  sincere  approbation  of  a  connexion 
with  Great  Britain,  and  of  their  ardent  wishes  for  a  re- 
turn of  that  friendly  intercourse,  from  which  this  coun- 
try had  derived  so  much  prosperity  and  happiness. 
These  sentiments  still  influenced  many*  of  the  leading 
members  of  the  convention  of  1775.  They  could  not 
part  with  the  fond  hope,  that  those  peaceful  days  would 
again  return,  which  had  shed  so  much  light  and  warmth 
over  the  land;  and  the  report  of  the  king's  gracious 
reception  of  the  petition  from  congress,  tended  to  che- 
rish and  foster  that  hope,  and  to  render  them  averse  to 
any  measure  of  violence.  But  Mr.  Henry  saw  things 
with  a  steadier  eye  and  a  deeper  insight.  His  judgment 
was  too  solid  to  be  duped  by  appearances;  and  his  heart 
too  firm  and  manly  to  be  amused  by  false  and  flattering 
hopes.  He  had  long  since  read  the  true  character  of 
the  British  court;  and  saw  that  no  alternative  remained 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  115 

for  his  country  but  abject  submission  or  heroic  resist- 
ance. It  was  not  for  a  soul  like  Henry's  to  hesitate  be- 
tween these  courses.  He  had  offered  upon  the  altar  of 
liberty  no  divided  heart.  The  gulf  of  war  which  yawn- 
ed before  him,  was  indeed  fiery  and  fearful;  but  he  saw 
that  the  awful  plunge  was  inevitable.  The  body  of  the 
convention  however,  hesitated.  They  cast  around  "  a 
longing  lingering  look"  on  those  flowery  fields,  on 
which  peace,  and  ease,  and  joy,  were  still  sporting;  and 
it  required  all  the  energies  of  a  Mentor  like  Hemy,  to 
push  them  from  the  precipice,  and  conduct  them  over 
the  stormy  sea  of  the  revolution,  to  liberty  and  glory. 

The  convention  being  formed  and  organized  for  bu- 
siness, proceeded,  in  the  first  place,  to  express  their  un- 
qualified approbation  of  the  measures  of  congress,  and 
to  declare,  that  they  considered  "  this  whole  continent 
as  under  the  highest  obligations  to  that  respectable  body, 
for  the  wisdom  of  their  counsels,  and  their  unremitted 
endeavours  to  maintain  and  preserve  inviolate  the  just 
rights  and  liberties  of  his  majesty's  dutiful  and  loyal 
subjects  in  America." 

They  next  resolve,  that  "  the  warmest  thanks  of  the 
convention,  and  of  all  the  inhabitants  of  this  colony, 
were  due,  and  that  this  just  tribute  of  applause  be  pre- 
sented to  the  worthy  delegates,  deputed  by  a  former 
convention,  to  represent  this  colony  in  general  congress, 
for  their  cheerful  undertaking  and  faithful  discharge  of 
the  very  important  trust  reposed  in  them." 

The  morning  of  the  23d  March  was  opened,  by 
reading  a  petition  and  memorial  from  the  assembly  of 
Jamaica  to  the  king's  most  excellent  majesty:  where- 
upon it  was  "  resolved,  that  the  imfeigned  thanks  and 
most  grateful  acknowledgments  of  the  convention  be 
presented  to  that  very  respectable  assembly,  for  the 


116  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

exceeding  generous  and  affectionate  part  they  have  so 
nobly  taken,  in  the  unhappy  contest  between  Great 
Britain  and  her  colonies;  and  for  their  truly  patriotic  en- 
deavours to  fix  the  just  claims  of  the  colonists  upon  the 
most  permanent  constitutional  principles: — that  the  as- 
sembly be  assured,  that  it  is  the  most  ardent  wish  of  this 
colony  (and  they  were  persuaded  of  the  whole  conti- 
nent of  North  America)  to  see  a  speedy  return  of  those 
halcyon  days,  when  we  lived  a  free  and  happy  peo- 
ple." 

These  proceedings  were  not  adapted  to  the  taste  of 
Mr.  Henry;  on  the  contrary,  they  were  "  gall  and 
wormwood"  to  him.  The  house  required  to  be  wrought 
up  to  a  bolder  tone.  He  rose,  therefore,  and  moved 
the  following  manly  resolutions: 

"  Resolved,  That  a  well  regulated  militia,  composed 
of  gentlemen  and  yeomen,  is  the  natural  strength  and 
only  security  of  a  free  government;  that  such  a  militia  in 
this  colony,  would  for  ever  render  it  unnecessary  for  the 
mother  country  to  keep  among  us  for  the  purpose  of 
our  defence,  any  standing  army  of  mercenary  soldiers, 
always  subversive  of  the  quiet,  and  dangerous  to  the 
liberties  of  the  people,  and  would  obviate  the  pretext 
of  taxing  us  for  their  support. 

"  That  the  establishment  of  such  a  militia  is,  at  this 
time,  peculiarly  necessary,  by  the  state  of  our  laws,  for 
the  protection  and  defence  of  the  country,  some  of 
which  are  already  expired,  and  others  will  shortly  be 
so;  and  that  the  known  remissness  of  government  in 
calling  us  together  in  legislative  capacity,  renders  it  too 
insecure,  in  this  time  of  danger  and  distress,  to  rely 
that  opportunity  will  be  given  of  renewing  them,  in 
general  assembly,  or  making  any  provision  to  secure  our 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  117 

inestimable  lights  and  liberties,  from  those  further  viola- 
tions with  which  they  are  threatened. 

"  Resolved,  therefore,   That  this  colony  be  immedi- 
ately put  into  a  state  of  defence,  and  that 
be  a  committee  to  prepare  a  plan  for  embodying,  arm- 
ing, and  disciplining  such  a  number  of  men,  as  may  be 
sufficient  for  that  purpose" 

The  alarm  which  such  a  proposition  must  have  given 
to  those  who  had  contemplated  no  resistance  of  a  cha- 
racter more  serious  than  petition,  non-importation,  and 
passive  fortitude,  and  who  still  hung  with  suppliant 
tenderness  on  the  skirts  of  Britain,  will  be  readily  con- 
ceived by  the  reflecting  reader.  The  shock  was  pain- 
ful. It  was  almost  general.  The  resolutions  were  op- 
posed as  not  only  rash  in  policy,  but  as  harsh  and  well 
nigh  impious  in  point  of  feeling.  Some  of  the  warmest 
patriots  of  the  convention  opposed  them.  Richard 
Bland,  Benjamin  Harrison,  and  Edmund  Pendleton, 
who  had  so  lately  drunk  of  the  fountain  of  patriotism 
in  the  continental  congress,  and  Robert  C.  Nicholas, 
one  of  the  best  as  well  as  ablest  men  and  patriots  in 
the  state,  resisted  them  with  all  their  influence  and  abili- 
ties. 

They  urged  the  late  gracious  reception  of  the  con- 
gressional petition  by  the  throne.  They  insisted  that 
national  comity,  and  much  more  filial  respect,  demanded 
the  exercise  of  a  more  dignified  patience.  That  the 
sympathies  of  the  parent  country  were  now  on  our  side. 
That  the  friends  of  American  liberty  in  parliament, 
were  still  with  us,  and  had,  as  yet,  had  no  cause  to  blush 
for  our  indiscretion.  That  the  manufacturing  interests 
of  Great  Britain,  already  smarting  under  the  effects  ol 
our  non-importation,  co-operated  powerfully  towards 
our  relief.     That  the  sovereign  himself  had  relented, 


118  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

and  showed  that  he  looked  upon  our  sufferings  with  an 
eye  of  pity.  "  Was  this  a  moment/5  they  asked, "  to  disgust 
our  friends,  to  extinguish  all  the  conspiring  sympathies 
which  were  working  in  our  favour,  to  turn  their  friend- 
ship into  hatred,  their  pity  into  revenge?  And  what  was 
there,  they  asked,  in  the  situation  of  the  colony,  to 
tempt  us  to  this?  Were  we  a  great  military  people? 
Were  we  ready  for  war?  Where  were  our  stores — 
where  were  our  arms — where  our  soldiers — where  our 
generals — where  our  money,  the  sinews  of  war?  They 
were  no  where  to  be  found.  In  truth,  we  were  poor — 
we  were  naked — we  were  defenceless.  And  yet  we 
talk  of  assuming  the  front  of  war!  of  assuming  it  too, 
against  a  nation,  one  of  the  most  formidable  in  the  world! 
A  nation  ready  and  armed  at  all  points!  Her  navies 
riding  triumphant  in  every  sea;  her  armies  never  march- 
ing but  to  certain  victory!  What  was  to  be  the  issue 
of  the  struggle  we  were  called  upon  to  court?  What 
could  be  the  issue,  in  the  comparative  circumstances  of 
the  two  countries,  but  to  yield  up  this  country  an  easy 
prey  to  Great  Britain,  and  to  convert  the  illegitimate 
right  which  the  British  parliament  now  claimed,  into  a 
firm  and  indubitable  right,  by  conquest!  The  measure 
might  be  brave;  but  it  was  the  bravery  of  madmen.  It 
had  no  pretension  to  the  character  of  prudence;  and  as 
little  to  the  grace  of  genuine  courage.  It  would  be 
time  enough  to  resort  to  measures  of  despair,  when 
every  well  founded  hope  had  entirely  vanished/' 

To  this  strong  view  of  the  subject,  supported  as  it 
was,  by  the  stubborn  fact  of  the  well  known  helpless 
condition  of  the  colony,  the  opponents  of  those  resolu- 
tions superadded  every  topic  of  persuasion,  which  be- 
longed to  the  cause. 

"  The  strength  and  lustre  which  we  derived  from  our 


LIFE    OF  HENRY.  119 

connexion  with  Great  Britain— the  domestic  comforts 
which  we  had  drawn  from  the  same  source,  and  whose 
value  we  were  now  able  to  estimate  by  their  loss — that 
ray  of  reconciliation  which  was  dawning  upon  us  from 
the  east,  and  which  promised  so  fair  and  happy  a  day: — 
with  this  they  contrasted  the  clouds  and  storms  which  the 
measure  now  proposed,  was  so  well  calculated  to  raise — 
and  in  which,  we  should  not  have  even  the  poor  con- 
solation of  being  pitied  by  the  world,  since  we  should 
have  so  needlessly  and  rashly,  drawn  them  upon  our- 
selves." 

These  arguments  and  topics  of  persuasion,  were  so 
well  justified  by  the  appearance  of  things,  and  were 
moreover  so  entirely  in  unison  with  that  love  of  ease 
and  quiet  which  is  natural  to  man,  and  that  disposition 
to  hope  for  happier  times,  even  under  the  most  forbid- 
ding circumstances,  that  an  ordinary  man,  in  Mr.  Henry's 
situation,  would  have  been  glad  to  compound  with  the 
displeasure  of  the  house,  by  being  permitted  to  with- 
draw his  resolutions  in  silence. 

Not  so,  Mr.  Henry.  His  was  a  spirit  fitted  to  raise 
the  whirlwind,  as  well  as  to  ride  in  it.  His  was  that 
comprehensive  view,  that  unerring  prescience,  that 
perfect  command  over  the  actions  of  men,  which  quali- 
fied him  not  merely  to  guide,  but  almost  to  create  the 
destinies  of  nations. 

He  rose  at  this  time  with  a  majesty  unusual  to  him 
in  an  exordium,  and  with  all  that  self-possession  by 
which  he  was  so  invariably  distinguished.  "  No  man," 
he  said,  "thought  more  highly  than  he  did,  of  the 
patriotism,  as  well  as  abilities,  of  the  very  worthy  gen- 
tlemen who  had  just  addressed  the  house.  But  dif- 
ferent men  often  saw  the  same  subject  in  different 
lights;  and  therefore,  he  hoped  it  would  not  be  thought 


120  SKETCHES   OF   THE 

disrespectful  to  those  gentlemen,  if,  entertaining  as  he 
did,  opinions  of  a  character  very  opposite  to  theirs,  he 
should  speak  forth  his  sentiments  freely,  and  without 
reserve.  This/5  he  said,  "  was  no  time  for  ceremony. 
The  question  before  the  house  was  one  of  awful  mo- 
ment to  this  country.  For  his  own  part,  he  consider- 
ed it  as  nothing  less  than  a  question  of  freedom  or 
slavery.  And  in  proportion  to  the  magnitude  of  the 
subject,  ought  to  be  the  freedom  of  the  debate.  It  was 
only  in  this  way  that  they  could  hope  to  arrive  at  truth, 
and  fulfil  the  great  responsibility  which  they  held  to 
God  and  their  country.  Should  he  keep  back  his 
opinions,  at  such  a  time,  through  fear  of  giving  offence, 
he  should  consider  himself  as  guilty  of  treason  towards 
his  country,  and  of  an  act  of  disloyalty  toward  the  ma- 
jesty of  Heaven,  which  lie  revered  above  all  earthly 
kings." 

"  Mr.  President/'  said  he,  "  it  is  natural  to  man  to 
indulge  in  the  illusions  of  hope.  We  are  apt  to  shut 
our  eyes  against  a  painful  truth — and  listen  to  the  song 
of  that  svren,  till  she  transforms  us  into  beasts.  Is  it," 
he  asked,  "  the  part  of  wise  men,  engaged  in  a  great  and 
arduous  struggle  for  liberty?  Were  we  disposed  to  be 
of  the  number  of  those,  who  having  eyes,  see  not,  and 
having  ears,  hear  not,  the  things  which  so  nearly  concern 
their  temporal  salvation?  For  his  part,  whatever  anguish 
of  spirit  it  might  cost,  he  was  willing  to  know  the  whole 
truth;  to  know  the  worst,  and  to  provide  for  it." 

"He  had,"  he  said,  "but  one  lamp  by  which  his 
feet  were  guided:  and  that  was  the  lamp  of  experience. 
He  knew  of  no  way  of  judging  of  the  future,  but  by  the 
past.  And  judging  by  the  past,  he  wished  to  know 
what  there  had  been  in  the  conduct  of  the  British 
ministry  for  the  last  ten  years,  to  justify  those  hopes 


LIFE  OP  HENRY.  121 

with  which  gentlemen  had  been  pleased  to  solace  them- 
selves and  the  house?  Is  it  that  insidious  smile  with 
which  our  petition  has  been  lately  received?  Trust  it 
not,  sir;  it  will  prove  a  snare  to  your  feet.  Suffer  not 
yourselves  to  be  betrayed  with  a  kiss.  Ask  yourselves 
how  this  gracious  reception  of  our  petition,  comports 
with  those  warlike  preparations  which  cover  our  waters 
and  darken  our  land?  Are  fleets  and  armies  necessary 
to  a  work  of  love  and  reconciliation?  Have  we  shown 
ourselves  so  unwilling  to  be  reconciled,  that  force  must 
be  called  in  to  win  back  our  love?  Let  us  not  deceive 
ourselves,  sir.  These  are  the  implements  of  war  and 
subjugation — the  last  arguments  to  which  kings  resort. 
I  ask  gentlemen,  sir,  what  means  this  martial  array,  if 
its  purpose  be  not  to  force  us  to  submission?  Can  gentle- 
men assign  any  other  possible  motive  for  it?  Has  Great 
Britain  any  enemy  in  this  quarter  of  the  world,  to  call 
for  all  this  accumulation  of  navies  and  armies?  No,  sir: 
she  has  none.  They  are  meant  for  us:  they  can  be 
meant  for  no  other.  They  are  sent  over  to  bind  and 
rivet  upon  us  those  chains,  which  the  British  ministry 
have  been  so  long  forging.  And  what  have  we  to  op- 
pose to  them?  Shall  we  try  argument?  Sir,  we  have 
been  trying  that  for  the  last  ten  years.  Have  we  any- 
thing new  to  offer  upon  the  subject?  Nothing.  We  have 
held  the  subject  up  in  every  light  of  which  it  is  capable; 
but  it  has  been  all  in  vain.  Shall  we  resort  to  entreaty 
and  humble  supplication?  What  terms  shall  we  find, 
which  have  not  been  already  exhausted?  Let  us  not,  I 
beseech  you,  sir,  deceive  ourselves  longer.  Sir,  we 
have  done  every  thing  that  could  be  done,  to  avert  the 
storm  which  is  now  coming  on.  We  have  petitioned — 
we  have  remonstrated — we  have  supplicated — we  have 
prostrated  ourselves  before  the  throne,  and  have  implor- 

Q 


122  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

ed  its  interposition  to  arrest  the  tyrannical  hands  of  the 
ministry  and  parliament.  Our  petitions  have  been 
slighted;  our  remonstrances  have  produced  additional 
violence  and  insult;  our  supplications  have  been  disre- 
garded; and  we  have  been  spurned,  with  contempt, 
from  the  foot  of  the  throne.  In  vain,  after  these  things, 
may  we  indulge  the  fond  hope  of  peace  and  reconcilia- 
tion. There  is  no  longer  any  room  for  hope.  If  we 
wish  to  be  free — if  we  mean  to  preserve  inviolate  those 
inestimable  privileges  for  which  we  have  been  so  long 
contending — if  we  mean  not  basely  to  abandon  the  noble 
struggle  in  which  we  have  been  so  long  engaged,  and 
which  we  have  pledged  ourselves  never  to  abandon,  until 
the  glorious  object  of  our  contest  shall  be  obtained — we 
must  fight! — I  repeat  it,  sir,  we  must  fight!!  An  appeal 
to  arms  and  to  the  God  of  Hosts,  is  all  that  is  left 
us!'7* 

<c  They  tell  us,  sir,"  continued  Mr.  Hemy,  "  that  we 
are  weak — unable  to  cope  with  so  formidable  an  adver- 
sary. But  when  shall  we  be  stronger?  Will  it  be  the 
next  week,  or  the  next  year?  Will  it  be  when  we  are 
totally  disarmed;  and  when  a  British  guard  shall  be  sta- 
tioned in  every  house?  Shall  we  gather  strength  by  irre- 
solution and  inaction?  Shall  we  acquire  the  means  of 
effectual  resistance,  by  lying  supinely  on  our  backs,  and 
hugging  the  delusive  phantom  of  hope,  until  our  enemies 

*  "  Imagine  to  yourself,"  says  my  correspondent,  (judge  Tucker,)  "  thi> 
sentence  delivered  with  all  the  calm  dignity  of  Cato,  of  Utica ;  imagine  to 
yourself  the  Roman  senate,  assembled  in  the  capitol,  when  it  was  entered  by 
the  profane  Gauls,  who,  at  first,  were  awed  by  their  presence,  as  if  they  bad 
entered  an  assembly  of  the  gods !  Imagine  that  you  heard  that  Cato  address- 
ing such  a  senate — imagine  that  you  saw  the  hand-writing  on  the  wall  of 
Belshazzar's  palace — imagine  you  heard  a  voice  as  from  heaven  uttering  the 
words,'  We  mvstjight,'  as  the  doom  of  fate,  and  you  may  have  some  idea  of  the 
speaker,  the  assembly  to  whom  he  addressed  himself,  and  the  auditory,  of 
which  1  was  one." 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  123 

shall  have  bound  us,  hand  and  foot?  Sir,  we  are  not 
weak,  if  we  make  a  proper  use  of  those  means  which 
the  God  of  nature  hath  placed  in  our  power.  Three 
millions  of  people,  armed  in  the  holy  cause  of  liberty, 
and  in  such  a  country  as  that  which  we  possess,  are  in- 
vincible by  any  force  which  our  enemy  can  send  against 
us.  Besides,  sir,  we  shall  not  fight  our  battles  alone. 
There  is  a  just  God  who  presides  over  the  destinies  of 
nations;  and  who  will  raise  up  friends  to  fight  our  bat- 
tles for  us.  The  battle,  sir,  is  not  to  the  strong  alone; 
it  is  to  the  vigilant,  the  active,  the  brave.  Besides,  sir, 
we  have  no  election.  If  we  were  base  enough  to  desire 
it,  it  is  now  too  late  to  retire  from  the  contest.  There 
is  no  retreat,  but  in  submission  and  slavery!  Our  chains 
are  forged.  Their  clanking  may  be  heard  on  the  plains 
of  Boston!  The  war  is  inevitable — and  let  it  come!!  I 
repeat  it,  sir,  let  it  come!!! 

"  It  is  in  vain,  sir,  to  extenuate  the  matter.  Gentle- 
men may  ciy,  peace,  peace — but  there  is  no  peace.  The 
war  is  actually  begun!  The  next  gale  that  sweeps  from 
the  north,  will  bring  to  our  ears  the  clash  of  resounding 
arms!  Our  brethren  are  already  in  the  field!  Why  stand 
we  here  idle?  What  is  it  that  gentlemen  wish?  What 
would  they  have  ?  Is  life  so  dear,  or  peace  so  sweet,  as 
to  be  purchased  at  the  price  of  chains,  and  slavery? 
Forbid  it,  Almighty  God! — I  know  not  what  course 
others  may  take;  but  as  for  me,"  cried  he,  with  both 
his  arms  extended  aloft,  his  brows  knit,  every  feature 
marked  with  the  resolute  purpose  of  his  soul,  and  his 
voice  swelled  to  its  boldest  note  of  exclamation — "  give 
me  liberty,  or  give  me  death!" 

He  took  his  seat.  No  murmur  of  applause  was  heard. 
The  effect  was  too  deep.  After  the  trance  of  a  moment, 
several  members  started  from  their  seats.     The  cry, "  to 


124  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

arms,"  seemed  to  quiver  on  every  lip,  and  gleam  from 
every  eye!  Richard  H.  Lee  arose  and  supported  Mr. 
Henry,  with  his  usual  spirit  and  elegance.  But  his 
melody  was  lost  amidst  the  agitations  of  that  ocean, 
which  the  master  spirit  of  the  storm  had  lifted  up  on 
high.  That  supernatural  voice  still  sounded  in  their 
ears,  and  shivered  along  their  arteries.  They  heard,  in 
every  pause,  the  cry  of  liberty  or  death.  They  became 
impatient  of  speech — their  souls  were  on  fire  for  action* 
The  resolutions  were  adopted;  and  Patrick  Henry, 
Richard  H.  Lee,  Robert  C.  Nicholas,  Benjamin  Har- 
rison, Lemuel  Riddick,  George  Washington,  Adam 
Stevens,  Andrew  Lewis,  William  Christian,  Edmund 
Pendleton,  Thomas  Jefferson,  and  Isaac  Zane,  esquires, 
were  appointed  a  committee  to  prepare  the  plan  called 
for  by  the  last  resolution-! 

*  Mr.  Randolph  in  his  manuscript  history,  lias  given  a  most  eloquent  and 
impressive  account  of  this  debate.  Since  these  sheets  were  prepared  for 
the  press,  and  at  the  moment  of  their  departure  from  the  hands  of  the 
author,  he  has  received  from  chief  justice  Marshall,  a  note  in  relation  to  the 
same  debate,  which  he  thinks  too  interesting  to  suppress.  It  is  the  substance 
of  a  statement  made  to  the  chief  justice  (then  an  ardent  youth,  feeling  a 
most  enthusiastic  admiration  of  eloquence,  and  panting  for  war)  by  his 
father,  who  was  a  member  of  this  convention.  Mr.  Marshall,  (the  father,) 
after  speaking  of  Mr.  Henry's  speech  "  as  one  of  the  most  bold,  vehement, 
and  animated  pieces  of  eloquence  that  had  ever  been  delivered,"  proceeded 
to  state,  that  "  he  was  followed  by  Mr.  Richard  H.  Lee,  who  took  a  most  in- 
teresting view  of  our  real  situation.  He  stated  the  force  which  Britain  could 
probably  bring  to  bear  upon  us,  and  reviewed  our  resources  and  means  of 
resistance.  He  stated  the  advantages  and  disadvantages  of  both  parties,  and 
drew  from  this  statement,  auspicious  inferences.  But  he  concluded  with 
saying,  admitting  the  probable  calculations  to  be  against  us,  '  we  are  assur- 
ed in  holy  writ  that  the  race  is  not  to  the  swift,  nor  the  battle  to  the  strong : 
and  if  the  language  of  genius  may  be  added  to  inspiration,  I  will  say  with  our 
immortal  bard : 

Thrice,  is  he  armed,  who  hath  his  quarrel  just ! 
And  he,  but  naked,  though  lock'd  up  in  steel, 
Whose  conscience,  with  injustice  is  oppress'd!'" 

|  Colonel  Robert  Carter  Nicholas  (although  opposed  like  all  the  older 


LIFE  OF  IIENRV.  125 

The  constitution  of  this  committee  proves,  that  in 
those  days  of  genuine  patriotism,  there  existed  a  mutual 
and  noble  confidence,  which  deemed  the  opponents  of  a 
measure  no  less  worthy  than  its  friends,  to  assist  in  its 
execution.  A  correspondent,*  who  bore  himself  a  most 
distinguished  part  in  our  revolution,  in  speaking  of  the 
gentlemen  whom  I  have  just  named  as  having  opposed 
Mr.  Henry's  resolutions,  and  of  Mr.  Wythe  who  acted 
with  them,  says — "  these  were  honest  and  able  men, 
who  had  begun  the  opposition  on  the  same  grounds, 
but  with  a  moderation  more  adapted  to  their  age  and 
experience.  Subsequent  events  favoured  the  bolder 
spirits  of  Henry,  the  Lees,  Pages,  Mason,  &c.  with 
whom  I  went  in  all  points.  Sensible,  however,  of  the 
importance  of  unanimity  among  our  constituents, 
although  we  often  wished  to  have  gone  on  faster,  we 
slackened  our  pace,  that  our  less  ardent  colleagues  might 
keep  up  with  us;  and  they  on  their  part  differing  no- 
thing from  us  in  principle,  quickened  their  gait  somewhat 
beyond  that  which  their  prudence  might,  of  itself,  have 
advised,  and  thus  consolidated  the  phalanx  which 
breasted  the  power  of  Britain.  By  this  harmony  of  the 
bold  with  the  cautious,  we  advanced,  with  our  consti- 
tuents, in  undivided  mass,  and  with  fewer  examples  of 
separation  than,  perhaps,  existed  in  any  other  part  of 
the  union." 

patriots,  from  the  considerations  which  have  been  stated  in  the  text,  to 
resistance,  at  this  particular  point  of  time)  was,  nevertheless,  one  of  the. 
firmest  supporters  of  the  principles  of  the  revolution.  As  soon,  therefore, 
as  the  measure  of  resistance  was  carried,  in  order  to  give  to  it  the  greatest 
effect,  he  rose  and  moved  to  change  the  system  ;  and,  instead  of  arming 
the  militia,  to  raise  ten  thousand  reg*ulars  for  the  war ;  but  the  motion  was 
overruled.  Chief  justice  Marshall  says — "  I  have  frequently  heard  my 
father  speak  of  colonel  Nicholas'  motion,  to  raise  ten  thousand  men  for  the 
war." 

*  Mr.  Jefferson 


126  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

The  plan  for  embodying,  arming,  and  disciplining  the 
militia,  proposed  by  the  committee  which  has  just  been 
mentioned,  was  received  and  adopted,  and  is  in  the  fol- 
lowing terms: 

"  The  committee  propose  that  it  be  strongly  recom- 
mended to  the  colony,  diligently  to  put  in  execution  the 
militia  law  passed  in  the  year  1 738,  entitled,  c  An  act 
for  the  better  regulating  of  the  militia/  which  has  be- 
come in  force  by  the  expiration  of  all  subsequent  militia 
laws. 

"  The  committee  are  further  of  opinion,  that  as, 
from  the  expiration  of  the  above-mentioned  laws,  and 
various  other  causes,  the  legal  and  necessary  disciplin- 
ing the  militia  has  been  much  neglected,  and  a  proper 
provision  of  arms  and  ammunition  has  not  been  made, 
to  the  evident  danger  of  the  community,  in  case  of  in- 
vasion or  insurrection:  that  it  be  recommended  to  the 
inhabitants  of  the  several  counties  of  this  colony,  that 
they  form  one  or  more  volunteer  companies  of  infantry 
and  troops  of  horse  in  each  county,  and  to  be  in  con- 
stant training  and  readiness  to  act  on  any  emergency. 

"  That  it  be  recommended  particularly  to  the  coun- 
ties of  Brunswick,  Dinwiddie,  Chesterfield,  Henrico, 
Hanover,  Spotsylvania,  King  George,  and  Stafford,  and 
to  all  counties  below  these,  that,  out  of  such  their  vo- 
lunteers, they  form,  each  of  them,  one  or  more  troops 
of  horse;  and  to  all  the  counties  above  these,  it  is  re- 
commended that  they  pay  a  more  particular  attention  to 
the  forming  a  good  infantry. 

"  That  each  company  of  infantry  consist  of  sixty- 
eight,  rank  and  file,  to  be  commanded  by  one  captain, 
two  lieutenants,  one  ensign,  four  sergeants,  and  four 
corporals;  and  that  they  have  a  drummer,  and  be  fur- 
nished with  a  drum  and  colours;  that  every  man  be  pro- 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  1,27 

vided  with  a  good  rifle,  if  to  be  had,  or  otherwise  with 
a  common  firelock,  bayonet,  and  cartouch-box,  and  also 
with  a  tomahawk,  one  pound  of  gunpowder,  and  four 
pounds  of  ball  at  least,  fitted  to  the  bore  of  his  gun; 
that  he  be  clothed  in  a  hunting  shirt,  by  way  of  uni- 
form ;  and  that  he  use  all  endeavour,  as  soon  as  possi- 
ble, to  become  acquainted  with  the  military  exercise  for 
infantry,  appointed  to  be  used  by  his  majesty  in  the  year 
1764  ' 

"  That  each  troop  of  horse  consist  of  thirty,  exclu- 
sive of  officers;  that  every  horseman  be  provided  with 
a  good  horse,  bridle,  saddle,  with  pistols  and  holsters,  a 
carbine,  or  other  short  firelock,  with  a  bucket,  a  cut- 
ting sword,  or  tomahawk,  one  pound  of  gunpowder, 
and  four  pounds  of  ball,  at  the  least;  and  use  the  utmost 
diligence  in  training  and  accustoming  his  horse  to  stand 
the  discharge  of  fire-arms,  and  in  making  himself  ac- 
quainted with  the  military  exercise  for  cavalry. 

"  That  in  order  to  make  a  further  and  more  ample 
provision  of  ammunition,  it  be  recommended  to  the 
committees  of  the  several  counties,  that  they  collect 
from  their  constituents,  in  such  manner  as  shall  be  most 
agreeable  to  them,  so  much  money  as  will  be  sufficient 
to  purchase  half  a  pound  of  gunpowder,  one  pound  of 
lead,  necessary  flints  and  cartridge-paper,  for  every 
titheable  person  in  their  county;  that  they  immediately 
take  effectual  measures,  for  the  procuring  such  gun- 
powder, lead,  flints,  and  cartridge-paper,  and  dispose 
thereof,  when  procured,  in  such  place  or  places  of 
safety  as  they  may  think  best:  and  it  is  earnestly  recom- 
mended to  each  individual,  to  pay  such  proportion  of 
the  money  necessary  for  these  purposes,  as  by  the  re- 
spective committees  shall  be  judged  requisite. 

"  That  as  it  may  happen  that  some  counties,  from 


128  SKETCHES    OF   THE 

their  situation,  may  not  be  apprized  of  the  most  certain 
and  speedy  method  of  procuring  the  articles  before 
mentioned,  one  general  committee  should  be  appointed, 
whose  business  it  should  be,  to  procure  for  such  coun- 
ties as  may  make  application  to  them,  such  articles,  and 
so  much  thereof,  as  the  monies  wherewith  they  shall 
furnish  the  said  committee,  will  purchase,  after  deduct- 
ing the  charges  of  transportation,  and  other  necessary 
expenses." 

At  the  same  session  of  the  convention,  I  find  that 
the  alert  and  enquiring  spirit  of  Mr.  Henry  laid  hold  of 
another  instance  of  royal  misrule.  Governor  Dunmore 
it  seems,  by  a  recent  proclamation,  had  declared,  that 
his  majesty  had  given  orders,  for  all  vacant  lands 
within  this  colony  to  be  put  up  in  lots  at  public 
sale;  and  that  the  highest  bidder  for  such  lots  should 
be  the  purchaser  thereof,  and  should  hold  the  same, 
subject  to  a  reservation  of  one  halfpenny  per  acre,  by 
way  of  annual  quit-rent,  and  of  all  mines  of  gold,  sil- 
ver, and  precious  stones.  These  terms  were  deemed 
an  innovation  on  the  established  usage  of  granting  lands 
in  this  colony;  and  this  sagacious  politician  saw  in  the 
proceeding,  not  only  an  usurpation  of  power,  but  a 
great  subduction  of  the  natural  wealth  of  the  colony, 
and  the  creation,  moreover,  of  a  separate  band  of  te- 
nants and  retainers,  devoted  to  the  vilest  measures  of 
the  crown.  With  a  view  therefore,  to  defeat  this  mea- 
sure, he  moved  the  following  resolution,  which  was 
adopted: 

"  Resolved,  That  a  committee  be  appointed  to  en- 
quire, whether  his  majesty  may  of  right  advance  the 
terms  of  granting  lands  in  this  colony,  and  make  report 
thereof  to  the  next  general  assembly  or  convention;  and 
that  in  the  mean  time  it  be  recommended  to  all  persons 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  129 

whatever,  to  forbear  purchasing  or  accepting  lands,  on 
the  conditions  before  mentioned/'  Of  this  committee 
he  was  of  course  the  chairman;  and  the  other  members 
were  Richard  Bland,  Thomas  Jefferson,  Robert  C. 
Nicholas,  and  Edmund  Pendleton,  esquires. 

The  convention  having  adopted  a  plan  for  the  encour- 
agement of  arts  and  manufactures  in  this  colony,  and  re- 
appointed their  former  deputies  to  the  continental  con- 
gress, with  the  substitution  of  Mr.  Jefferson  for  Mr, 
Peyton  Randolph,  in  case  of  the  non-attendance  of 
the  latter;*  and  having  also  provided  for  a  re-election 
of  delegates  to  the  next  convention,  came  to  an  ad- 
journment! 

*  He  was  speaker  of  the  house  of  burgesses,  a  call  of  which  was  expected, 
and  did  accordingly  take  place. 

f  It  is  curious  to  read  in  the  file  of  papers  from  which  the  foregoing  pro- 
ceedings are  extracted,  and  immediately  following  them,  this  proclamation  of 
his  excellency  lord  Dunmore  : — 

"  Whereas,  certain  persons,  styling  themselves  delegates  of  several  of  his 
majesty's  colonies  in  America,  have  presumed,  without  his  majesty's  authori- 
ty or  consent,  to  assemble  together  at  Philadelphia,  in  the  months  of  Sep- 
tember and  October  last,  and  have  thought  fit,  among  other  unwarrantable 
proceedings,  to  resolve  that  it  will  be  necessary  that  another  congress  should 
be  held  at  the  same  place  on  the  10th  of  May  next,  unless  redress  of 
certain  pretended  grievances  be  obtained  before  that  time  ;  and  to  recom- 
mend that  all  the  colonies  of  North  America  should  choose  deputies  to 
attend  such  congress :  lam  commanded  by  the  king,  and  I  do  accordingly  issue 
this  my  proclamation,  to  require  all  magistrates  and  other  officers,  to  use 
their  utmost  endeavours  to  prevent  any  such  appointment  of  deputies, 
and  to  exhort  all  persons  whatever  within  this  government,  to  desist 
from  such  an  unjustifiable  proceeding,  so  highly  displeasing  to  his  ma' 
jesty." 

This  proclamation  was  published  while  the  convention  was  in  ses- 
sion, and  was  obviously  designed  to  have  an  effect  on  their  proceedings. 
It  passed  by  them,  however,  "  as  the  idle  wind  which  they  regarded  not." 
The  age  vpf  proclamations  was  gone,  and  the  glory  of  regal  governors 
pretty  nearly  extinguished  forever. 

It  ought  not  to  be  omitted,  however,  that  this  very  convention  passed  re- 
solutions complimentary  to  lord  Dunmore,  and  the  troops  which  he  had 
eommanded  in  an  expedition  of  the  preceding  year  against  the  Indians  :  a 
compliment  which,  as  we  shall  see,  was  afterwards  found  to  be  unmerited.  As 

R 


130  SKETCHES    OF    THE 


SECTION  V. 

The  storm  of  the  revolution  now  began  to  thicken. 
The  cloud  of  war  had  actually  burst  on  the  New  Eng- 
land states,  while  as-  yet  the  middle  and  southern  colo- 
nies were  in  comparative  repose.  The  calm,  however, 
was  deceitful,  and  of  short  duration;  and,  so  far  as  Vir- 
ginia was  concerned,  had  been  occasioned  rather  by 
the  absence  of  governor  Dunmore  on  an  Indian  expedi- 
tion, than  any  disposition  on  his  part  to  favour  the  colo- 
ny. His  return  to  Williamsburg  was  the  signal  for 
violence. 


the  resolution  in  regard  to  lord  Dunmore  does  honour  to  the  candour  of  the 
convention,  and  shows  also  how  little  personality  there  was  in  the  contest,  I 
take  leave  to  subjoin  it. 

"Resolved,  unanimously,  That  the  most  cordial  thanks  of  the  people  of 
this  colony,  are  a  tribute  justly  due  to  our  worthy  governor,  lord  Dunmore, 
for  his  truly  noble,  wise  and  spirited  conduct,  on  the  late  expedition  against 
our  Indian  enemy — a  conduct  which  at  once  evinces  his  excellency's  atten- 
tion to  the  true  interests  of  this  colony,  and  a  zeal  in  the  executive  department 
which  no  dangers  can  divert,  or  difficulties  hinder,  from  achieving  the  most 
important  services  to  the  people  who  have  the  happiness  to  live  under  his 
administration." 

Lord  Dunmore  was  not  a  man  of  popular  mariners ;  he  had  nothing  of  the 
mildness,  the  purity,  the  benevolence  and  suavity  of  his  predecessor.  On 
the  contrary,  he  is  represented  as  having  been  rude  and  offensive  :  coarse 
in  his  figure,  his  countenance  and  his  manners.  Yet  he  received  from  the 
house  of  burgesses,  the  most  marked  respect.  Thus  in  1774,  while  the 
liberties  of  the  colonies  were  bleeding  at  every  pore,  and  while  the  house 
was  smarting  severely,  under  the  recent  news  of  the  occlusion  of  the  port 
of  Boston,  they  paid  to  lady  Dunmore,  who  had  just  arrived  at  Williamsburg, 
the  most  cordial  and  elegant  attentions,  congratulated  his  lordship  on 
this  increase  to  his  domestic  felicity ;  and  even,  after  their  abrupt  disso- 
lution, complimented  the  inhabitants  of  the  palace  with  a  splendid  ball 
and  entertainment,  in  honour  of  the  arrival  of  the  countess  Dunmore  and 
her  family. 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  131 

It  seems  to  have  been  a  matter  of  concert  among  the 
colonial  governors,  if  indeed  the  policy  was  not  dic- 
tated by  the  British  court,  to  disarm  the  people  of  all 
the  colonies  at  one  and  the  same  time,  and  thus  incapa- 
citate them  for  resistance  in  concert. 

To  give  effect  to  this  measure,  the  export  of  powder 
from  Great  Britain  was  prohibited:  and  an  attempt  was 
generally  made  about  the  same  period,  to  seize  the  pow- 
der and  arms  in  the  several  provincial  magazines.  Gage, 
the  successor  of  Hutchinson  in  the  government  of  Mas- 
sachusetts, set  the  example,  by  a  seizure  of  the  ammuni- 
tion and  military  stores  at  Cambridge,  and  the  powder  in 
the  magazines  at  Charlestown  and  other  places.  His  ex- 
ample was  followed  by  similar  attempts  in  other  colonies 
to  the  north.  And  on  Thursday,  the  20th  of  April,  1 775, 
captain  Henry  Collins,  of  the  armed  schooner  Magda- 
len, then  lying  at  BurwelFs  ferry,  on  James  river,  came 
up  at  the  head  of  a  body  of  marines,  and,  acting 
under  the  orders  of  lord  Dunmore,  entered  the  city  of 
Williamsburg  in  the  dead  of  the  night,  and  carried  off' 
from  the  public  magazine,  about  twenty  barrels  of  pow- 
der, which  he  placed  on  board  his  schooner  before  the 
break  of  day.  Clandestine  as  the  movement  had  been, 
the  alarm  was  given  to  the  inhabitants  early  on  the  next 
morning.  Their  exasperation  may  be  easily  conceived. 
The  town  was  in  tumult.  A  considerable  body  of  them 
flew  to  arms,  with  the  determination  to  compel  capt 
Collins  to  restore  the  powder.  With  much  difficulty, 
however,  they  were  restrained  by  the  graver  inhabitants 
of  the  town,  and  by  the  members  of  the  common  coun- 
cil, who  assured  them  that  proper  measures  should  be 
immediately  used  to  produce  a  restoration  of  the  pow- 
der, without  the  effusion  of  human  blood.     The  conn- 


135  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

cil  therefore  met  in  their  corporate  character,  and  ad- 
dressed the  following  letter  to  governor  Dunmore. 

"  To  his  excellency  the  right  hon.  John  earl  of  Dun- 
more,  his  majesty's  lieutenant,  governor-general, 
and  commander  in  chief  of  the  colony  and  dominion 
of  Virginia : — The  humble  address  of  the  mayor, 
recorder,  aldermen,  and  common  council  of  the  city 
of  Williamsburg: 

"  My  Lord, 

"  We,  his  majesty's  dutiful  and  loyal  subjects,  the 
mayor,  recorder,  aldermen,  and  common  council  of  the 
city  of  Williamsburg,  in  common  hall  assembled,  hum- 
bly beg  leave  to  represent  to  your  excellency,  that  the 
inhabitants  of  this  city,  were  this  morning,  exceedingly 
alarmed  by  a  report  that  a  large  quantity  of  gunpowder 
was,  in  the  preceding  night,  while  they  were  sleeping  in 
their  beds,  removed  from  the  public  magazine  in  this 
city,  and  conveyed,  under  an  escort  of  marines,  on 
board  one  of  his  majesty's  armed  vessels  lying  at  a  ferry 
on  James  river. 

"  We  beg  leave  to  represent  to  your  excellency,  that 
as  the  magazine  was  erected  at  the  public  expense  of 
this  colony,  and  appropriated  to  the  safe  keeping  of 
such  munition  as  should  be  there  lodged,  from  time  to 
time,  for  the  protection  and  security  of  the  country,  by 
arming  thereout,  such  of  the  militia  as  might  be  neces- 
sary in  cases  of  invasions  and  insurrections,  they  humbly 
conceive  it  to  be  the  only  proper  repository  to  be  resort- 
ed to  in  times  of  imminent  danger. 

"  We  further  beg  leave  to  inform  your  excellency, 
that,  from  various  reports  at  present  prevailing  in  dif- 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  133 

ferent  parts  of  the  country,  we  have  too  much  reason 
to  believe  that  some  wicked  and  designing  persons 
have  instilled  the  most  diabolical  notions  into  the  minds 
of  our  slaves;  and  that,  therefore,  the  utmost  attention 
to  our  internal  security,  is  become  the  more  neces- 
sary. 

"  The  circumstances  of  this  city,  my  lord,  we  con- 
sider as  peculiar  and  critical.  The  inhabitants,  from 
the  situation  of  the  magazine  in  the  midst  of  their  city, 
have  for  a  long  tract  of  time,  been  exposed  to  all  those 
dangers  which  have  happened  in  many  countries  from 
explosions,  and  other  accidents.  They  have,  from  time 
to  time,  thought  it  incumbent  on  them  to  guard  the 
magazine.  For  their  security  they  have,  for  some  time 
past,  judged  it  necessary  to  keep  strong  patrols  on  foot: 
in  their  present  circumstances  then,  to  have  the  chief 
and  necessary  means  of  their  defence  removed,  cannot 
but  be  extremely  alarming. 

"  Considering  ourselves  as  guardians  of  the  city,  we 
therefore  humbly  desire  to  be  informed  by  your  excel- 
lency, upon  what  motives,  and  for  what  particular  pur- 
pose, the  powder  has  been  carried  off  in  such  a  manner; 
and  we  earnestly  entreat  your  excellency  to  order  it  to 
be  immediately  returned  to  the  magazine." 

To  which  his  excellency  returned  this  verbal  an- 
swer : 

"  That  hearing  of  an  insurrection  in  a  neighbouring 
county,  he  had  removed  the  powder  from  the  magazine, 
where  he  did  not  think  it  secure,  to  a  place  of  perfect 
security;  and  that,  upon  his  word  and  honour,  whenever 
it  was  wanted,  on  any  insurrection,  it  should  be  deliver- 
ed, in  half  an  hour;  that  he  had  removed  it,  in  the  night 
time,  to  prevent  any  alarm,  and  that  captain  Collins  had 
his  express  commands  for  the  part  he  had  acted; 


134 


SKETCHES    OF    THE 


he  was  surprised  to  hear  the  people  were  under  arms 
on  this  occasion,  and  that  he  should  not  think  it 
prudent  to  put  powder  into  their  hands,  in  such  a 
situation/' 

This  conditional  promise  of  the  return  of  the  pow- 
der, supported  by  the  influence  of  Mr.   Peyton  Ran- 
dolph, Mr.  Robert  C.  Nicholas,  and  other  characters  of 
weight,  had  the  effect,  it  seems,  of  quieting  the  inhabi- 
tants for  that  day.     On  the  succeeding  night,  however, 
a  new  alarm  took  place,  on  a  report  that  a  number  of 
armed  men  had  again  landed  from  the  Magdalen,  about 
four  miles  below  the  city,  with  a  view  it  was  presumed 
of  making  another  visit  of  nocturnal  plunder.     The 
inhabitants  again  flew  to  arms;  but,  on  the  interposi- 
tion of  the  same  eminent  citizens,  the  ferment  was  allay- 
ed, and  nothing  more  was  done  than  to  strengthen  the 
usual  patrol  for  the  defence  of  the  city.     On  the  next 
day,  Saturday  the  22  d  of  April,  when  every  thing  was 
perfectly  quiet,  lord  Dunmore,  with  rather  more  heat 
than  discretion,  sent  a  message  into  the  city,  by  one  of 
the  magistrates,  and  which  his  lordship  had  delivered 
with  the  most  solemn  asseverations,  that  if  any  insult 
were  offered  to  capt.  Foy  (a  British  captain  residing  at 
the  palace  as  his  secretary,  and  considered  to  be  the 
instigator  of  the  governor  to  his  violences)  or  to  capt. 
Collins,  he  would  declare  freedom  to  the  slaves,  and  lay 
the  toiwi  in  ashes;  and  he  added,  that  he  could  easily 
depopulate  the  whole  country.     At  this  time  both  capt. 
Foy  and  Collins,  were  and  had  been  continually  walk- 
ing the  streets,  at  their  pleasure,  without  the  slightest 
indication  of  disrespect.     The  effect  of  a  threat,  so 
diabolically  ferocious,  directed  towards  a  people  who 
had  ever  shown  him  and  his  family  such  enthusiastic 
marks  of  respect  and  attention,  and  following  so  directly 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  135 

on  the  plunder  of  the  magazine,  will  be  readily  con- 
ceived. Yet  it  broke  not  out  into  any  open  act.  His 
lordship  remained  unmolested  even  by  a  disrespectful 
look.  The  augmented  patrol  was  kept  up;  but  no 
defensive  preparation  was  made  by  the  inhabitants  of 
the  city. 

The  transactions  which  were  passing  in  the  metro- 
polis, circulated  through  the  country  with  a  rapidity 
proportioned  to  their  interest,  and  with  this  farther 
aggravation,  which  was  also  true  in  point  of  fact,  that  in 
addition  to  the  clandestine  removal  of  the  powder,  the 
governor  had  caused  the  muskets  in  the  magazine  to  be 
stripped  of  their  locks. 

In  the  midst  of  the  irritation  excited  by  this  intelli- 
gence, came  the  news  of  the  bloody  battles  of  Lexington 
and  Concord,  resulting  from  an  attempt  of  the  governor, 
general  Gage,  to  seize  the  military  stores  deposited  at 
the  latter  place.  The  system  of  colonial  subjugation 
was  now  apparent:  the  effect  was  instantaneous.  The 
whole  country  flew  to  arms.  The  independent  com- 
panies, formed  in  happier  times  for  the  purpose  of  mili- 
tary discipline,  and  under  the  immediate  auspices  of 
lord  Dunmore  himself!,  raised  the  standard  of  liberty  in 
every  county.  By  the  27th  of  April,  there  were  assem- 
bled at  Fredericksburg,  upwards  of  seven  hundred  men 
well  armed  and  disciplined,  "friends  of  constitutional 
liberty  and  America."  Their  march,  however,  was 
arrested  by  a  letter  from  Mr.  Peyton  Randolph,  in  reply 
to  an  express,  and  received  on  the  29th,  by  which  they 
were  informed  that  the  gentlemen  of  the  city  and  neigh- 
bourhood of  Williamsburg,  had  had  full  assurance  from 
his  excellency,  that  the  affair  of  the  powder  should  be 
accommodated,  and  advising  that  the  gentlemen  of 
Fredericksburg  should  proceed  no  farther.  On  the  receipt 


136  SKETCHES    OF   THE 

of  this  letter,  a  council  was  held  of  one  hundred  and  two 
members,  delegates  of  the  provincial  convention,  and  offi- 
cers and  special  deputies  of  fourteen  companies  of  light 
horse,  then  rendezvoused  on  the  ground;  who,  after  the 
most  spirited  expressions  of  their  sentiments  on  the 
conduct  of  the  governor,  and  giving  a  mutual  pledge  to 
be  in  readiness,  at  a  moment's  warning,  to  re-assemble, 
and  by  force  of  arms,  to  defend  the  laws,  the  liberty, 
and  rights  of  this  or  any  sister  colony  from  unjust  and 
wicked  invasion,  advised  the  return  of  the  several  com- 
panies to  their  respective  homes;  and  also  ordered  that 
expresses  should  be  dispatched  to  the  troops  assembled 
at  the  Bowling  Green,  and  also  to  the  companies  from 
Frederick,  Berkeley,  Dunmore,  and  such  other  counties 
as  were  then  on  their  march,  to  return  them  thanks  for 
their  cheerful  offers  of  service,  and  to  acquaint  them 
with  the  determination  then  taken.  By  way  of  parody 
on  the  governor's  conclusion  of  the  proclamations,  by 
which  he  was  striving  to  keep  down  the  spirit  of  the 
country,  "  God  save  the  king/'  the  council  conclud- 
ed their  address  with  "  God  save  the  liberties  of 
America." 

Mr.  Hemy,  however,  was  not  disposed  to  let  this 
incident  pass  off  so  lightly.  His  was  a  mind  that  watch- 
ed events,  with  the  coolness  and  sagacity  of  a  veteran 
statesman.  He  kindled,  indeed,  in  the  universal  indig- 
nation which  the  conduct  of  the  governor  was  so  well 
calculated  to  excite;  seeing  clearly  the  inconvenience 
which  the  colony  must  experience  in  the  approaching 
contest,  from  the  loss  of  even  that  small  store  of  ammu- 
nition. This,  however,  was  a  minor  object  in  his 
esteem.  What  he  deemed  of  much  higher  importance 
was,  that  that  blow,  which  must  be  struck,  sooner  or 
later,  sJwuld  be  stnick  at  once,  before  an  overwhelming 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  137 

force  should  enter  the  colony;  that  that  habitual  de- 
ference and  subjection  which  the  people  were  accus- 
tomed to  feel  towards  the  governor,  as  the  representa- 
tive of  royalty,  and  which  bound  their  spirits  in  a  kind 
of  torpid  spell,  should  be  dissolved  and  dissipated;  that 
the  military  resources  of  the  country  should  be  de- 
veloped; that  the  people  might  see  and  feel  their 
strength,  by  being  brought  out  together;  that  the  revo- 
lution should  be  set  in  actual  motion  in  the  colony;  that 
the  martial  prowess  of  the  country,  should  be  awaken- 
ed, and  the  soldiery  animated  by  that  proud  and  reso- 
lute confidence,  which  a  successful  enterprise  in  the 
commencement  of  a  contest  never  fails  to  inspire. 
These  sentiments  were  then  avowed  by  him  to  two 
confidential  friends;*  to  whom  he  farther  declared  that 
he  considered  the  outrage  on  the  magazine  as  a  most  for- 
tunate circumstance;  and  as  one  which  would  rouse 
the  people  from  north  to  south.  "  You  may  in  vain 
talk  to  them,"  said  he,  "  about  the  duties  on  tea,  &c. 
These  things  will  not  affect  them.  They  depend  on 
principles,  too  abstracted  for  their  apprehension  and 
feeling.  But  tell  them  of  the  robbery  of  the  magazine, 
and  that  the  next  step  will  be  to  disarm  them,  you  bring 
the  subject  home  to  their  bosoms,  and  they  will  be  ready 
to  fly  to  arms  to  defend  themselves." 

To  make  of  this  circumstance  all  the  advantage 
which  he  contemplated,  as  soon  as  the  intelligence 
reached  him  from  Williamsburg,  he  sent  express  riders 
to  the  members  of  the  Independent  Company  of  Ha- 
nover, who  were  dispersed  and  resided  in  different  parts 
of  the  country,  requesting  them  to  meet  him  in  arms,  at 
New  Castle,  on  the  second  of  May,  on  business  of  the 

*  Col.  Richard  Morris  and  captain  George  Dabney;  on  the  authority  of 
Mr.  Dabney. 

S 


138  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

highest  importance  to  American  liberty.  In  order  to 
give  greater  dignity  and  authority  to  the  decisions  of  that 
meeting,  he  convoked  to  the  same  place,  the  county 
committee.  When  assembled,  he  addressed  them  with 
all  the  powers  of  his  eloquence:  laid  open  the  plan  on 
which  the  British  ministry  had  fallen  to  reduce  the 
colonies  to  subjection,  by  robbing  them  of  all  the  means 
of  defending  their  rights :  spread  before  their  eyes  in 
colours  of  vivid  description,  the  fields  of  Lexington 
and  Concord,  still  floating  with  the  blood  of  their  coun- 
trymen, gloriously  shed  in  the  general  cause;  showed 
them  that  the  recent  plunder  of  the  magazine  in  Wil- 
liamsburg, was  nothing  more  than  a  part  of  the  general 
system  of  subjugation;  that  the  moment  was  now  come  in 
which  they  were  called  upon  to  decide,  whether  they 
chose  to  live  free,  and  hand  down  the  noble  inheritance 
to  their  children,  or  to  become  hewers  of  wood,  and 
drawers  of  water  to  those  lordlings,  who  were  them- 
selves the  tools  of  a  corrupt  and  tyrannical  ministry — 
he  painted  the  country  in  a  state  of  subjugation,  and 
drew  such  pictures  of  wretched  debasement  and  abject 
vassalage,  as  filled  their  souls  with  horror  and  indigna- 
tion— on  the  other  hand,  he  carried  them  by  the  powers 
of  his  eloquence,  to  an  eminence  like  Mount  Pisgah; 
showed  them  the  land  of  promise,  which  was  to  be  won 
by  their  valour,  under  the  support  and  guidance  of 
heaven;  and  sketched  a  vision  of  America,  enjoying 
the  smiles  of  liberty  and  peace,  the  rich  productions  of 
her  agriculture  waving  on  every  field,  her  commerce 
whitening  every  sea,  in  tints  so  bright,  so  strong,  so 
glowing,  as  set  the  souls  of  his  hearers  on  fire.  He 
had  no  doubt,  he  said,  that  that  God,  who  in  former 
ages  had  hardened  Pharaolf  s  heart,  that  he  might  show 
forth  his  power  and  glory  in  the  redemption  of  his 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  139 

chosen  people,  had,  for  similar  purposes,  permitted  the 
flagrant  outrages  which  had  occurred  in  Williamsburg, 
and  throughout  the  continent.  It  was  for  them  now 
to  determine,  whether  they  were  worthy  of  this  divine  in- 
terference; whether  they  would  accept  the  high  boon 
now  held  out  to  them  by  heaven — that  if  they  would, 
though  it  might  lead  them  through  a  sea  of  blood,  they 
were  to  remember  that  the  same  God  whose  power 
divided  the  Red  Sea  for  the  deliverance  of  Israel,  still 
reigned  in  all  his  glory,  unchanged  and  unchangeable — 
was  still  the  enemy  of  the  oppressor,  and  the  friend  of 
the  oppressed — that  he  would  cover  them  from  their 
enemies  by  a  pillar  of  cloud  by  day,  and  guide  their  feet 
through  the  night  by  a  pillar  of  fire — that  for  his  own 
part,  he  was  anxious  that  his  native  county  should  dis- 
tinguish itself  in  this  grand  career  of  liberty  and  glory, 
and  snatch  the  noble  prize  which  was  now  offered  to 
their  grasp — that  no  time  was  to  be  lost — that  their 
enemies  in  this  colony  were  now  few  and  weak;  that  it 
would  be  easy  for  them,  by  a  rapid  and  vigorous  move- 
ment, to  compel  the  restoration  of  the  powder  which 
had  been  carried  off,  or  to  make  a  reprisal  on  the  king's 
revenues  in  the  hands  of  the  receiver  general,  which 
would  fairly  balance  the  account.  That  the  Hanover 
volunteers  would  thus  have  an  opportunity  of  striking 
the  first  blow  in  this  colony,  in  the  great  cause  of  Ame- 
rican liberty,  and  would  cover  themselves  with  never- 
fading  laurels. 

These  were  heads  of  his  harangue.  I  presume  not 
to  give  the  colouring.  That  was  Mr.  Henry^s  own,  and 
beyond  the  power  of  any  man^s  imitation.  The  effect, 
however,  was  equal  to  his  wishes.  The  meeting  was  in 
a  flame,  and  the  decision  immediately  taken,  that  the 


140  SKETCHES^  THE 

powder  should  be  retrieved,  or  counterbalanced  by  a 
reprisal. 

Capt.  Samuel  Meredith,  who  had  theretofore  com- 
manded the  independent  company,  resigned  his  com- 
mission in  Mr.  Henry's  fayour,  and  the  latter  gentleman 
was  immediately  invested  with  the  chief  command  of 
the  Hanover  volunteers.     Mr.  Meredith  accepted  the 
commission  of  lieutenant;  and  the  present  col.  Parke 
Goodall,  was  appointed  the  ensign  of  the  company.  Hav- 
ing received  orders  from  the  committee,  correspondent 
with  his  own  suggestions,  capt.  Henry  forthwith  took  up 
his  line  of  march  for  Williamsburg.     Ensign  Goodall 
was  detached,  with  a  party  of  sixteen  men,  to  cross  the 
river  into  King  William  county,  the  residence  of  Rich- 
ard Corbin,  the  king's  receiver  general;   to  demand 
from  him  three  hundred  and  thirty  pounds,  the  esti- 
mated value  of  the  powder;  and,  in  the  event  of  his 
refusal,  to  make  him  a  prisoner.     He  was  ordered,  in 
this  case,  to  treat  his  person  with  all  possible  respect 
and  tenderness,  and  to  bring  him  to  DoncasuVs  ordi- 
nary, about  sixteen  miles  above  Williamsburg,  where 
the  ensign  was  required,  at  all  events,  to  rejoin  the  main 
body.     The  detachment,  in  pursuance  of  their  orders, 
reached  the  residence  of  the  receiver  general  some 
hours  after  bedtime,  and  a  guard  was  stationed  around 
the  house  until  morning.     About  day-break,  however, 
the  ladies  of  the  family  made  their  appearance,  and 
gave  to  the  commanding  officer  of  the  detachment  the 
firm  and  correct  assurance,  that  col.  Corbin  was  not  at 
home;  but  that  the  house,  nevertheless,  was  open  to 
search,  if  it  was  the  pleasure  of  the  officer  to  make  it 
The  manner  of  the  assurance,  however,  was  too  satis- 
factory to  render  this  necessary,  and  the  detachment 


tIFE  OF  HENRY.  141 

hastened  to  form  the  junction  with  the  main  body  which 
had  been  ordered. 

In  the  mean  time,  the  march  of  this  gallant  corps, 
in  arms,  headed  by  a  man  of  Mr.  Henry's  distinction, 
produced  the  most  striking  effects  in  every  quarter. 
Correspondent  companies  started  up  on  all  sides,  and 
hastened  to  throw  themselves  under  the  banners  of 
Henry.  It  is  believed  that  five  thousand  men,  at  least, 
were  in  arms,  and  were  crossing  the  country  to  crowd 
around  his  standard,  and  support  it  with  their  lives.  The 
march  was  conducted  in  the  most  perfect  order,  and 
with  the  most  scrupulous  respect  to  the  countiy  through 
which  they  passed.  The  ranks  of  the  royalists  were 
filled  with  dismay.  Lady  Dunmore  with  her  family 
retired  to  the  Fowey  man  of  war,  then  lying  off"  the 
town  of  Little  York.  E^en  the  patriots  in  Williams- 
burg were  daunted  by  the  boldness,  and,  as  they  deem- 
ed it,  the  rashness  of  the  enterprise.  Messenger  after 
messenger  was  despatched  to  meet  Mr.  Henry  on  the 
way,  and  beg  him  to  desist  from  his  purpose,  and  dis- 
charge his  men.  It  was  in  vain.  He  was  inflexibly 
resolved  to  effect  the  purpose  of  his  expedition,  or  to 
perish  in  the  attempt.  The  messengers  were  therefore 
detained,  that  they  might  not  report  his  strength;  and 
the  march  was  continued  with  all  possible  celerity. 
The  governor  issued  a  proclamation,  in  which  he  de- 
nounced the  movement,  and  called  upon  the  people  of 
the  country  to  resist  it.  He  could  as  easily  have  called 
spirits  "  from  the  vasty  deep."  He  seems  not  to  have 
relied  much,  himself,  on  the  efficacy  of  his  proclama- 
tion. The  palace  was  therefore  filled  with  arms,  and 
a  detachment  of  marines  ordered  up  from  the  Fowey. 
Before  day-break,  on  the  morning  of  the  4th  of  May, 
capt,  Montague,  the  commander  of  that  ship,  landed  ? 


1 12  SKETCHES  OP  THE 

party  of  men,  with  the  following  letter,  addressed  to  the 
honourable  Thomas  Nelson,  the  president  of  his  ma- 
jesty's council. 

"  Fowey,  May  4th,  1775. 

"  Sir, 

"  I  have  this  morning  received  certain  information, 
that  his  excellency  lord  Dunmore,  governor  of  Virginia, 
is  threatened  with  an  attack,  at  day-break  this  morn- 
ing, at  his  palace  in  Williamsburg,  and  have  thought 
proper  to  send  a  detachment  from  his  majesty's  ship 
under  my  command,  to  support  his  excellency:  there- 
fore strongly  pray  you  to  make  use  of  every  endeavour 
to  prevent  the  party  from  being  molested  and  attacked, 
as  in  that  case  I  must  be  under  a  necessity  to  fire  upon 
this  town.     From 

"  George  Montague." 

Lord  Dunmore  however  thought  better  of  this  subject, 
and  caused  Mr.  Henry  to  be  met  at  Doncastle's,  about 
sunrise  on  the  same  morning,  with  the  receiver  gene- 
ral's bill  of  exchange,  for  the  sum  required.  It  was 
accepted  as  a  satisfaction  for  the  powder,  and  the  follow- 
ing receipt  was  passed  by  Mr.  Henry. 

"  Doncastle's  ordinary,  New  Kent,  May  4,  1775,  re- 
ceived from  the  hon.  Richard  Corbin,  esq.  his  majesty's 
receiver  general,  330J.  as  a  compensation  for  the  gun- 
powder lately  taken  out  of  the  public  magazine  by  the 
governor's  order;  which  money  I  promise  to  convey  to 
the  Virginia  delegates  at  the  general  congress,  to  be, 
under  their  direction,  laid  out  in  gunpowder  for  the 
colony's  use,  and  to  be  stored  as  they  shall  direct,  until 
the  next  colony,  convention,  or  general  assembly:  unless 
it  shall  be  necessary,  in  the  mean  time,  to  use  the  same 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  143 

in  the  defence  of  this  colony.  It  is  agreed,  that  in  case 
the  next  convention  shall  determine  that  any  part  of  the 
said  money  ought  to  be  returned  to  his  majesty's 
said  receiver  general,  that  the  same  shall  be  done 
accordingly. 

"  Patrick  Henry,  jun. 
"  Test, 

"  Samuel  Meredith, 
Parke  Goodall." 

The  march  of  the  marines  from  the  Fowey  had, 
however,  produced  the  most  violent  commotion  both 
in  York*  and  Williamsburg.    Mr.  Henry  himself,  seem- 


*  "  The  town  of  York  being  somewhat  alarmed  by  a  letter  from  capt.  Mon- 
tague, commander  of  his  majesty's  ship  the  Fowey,  addressed  to  the  hon. 
Thomas  Nelson,  esquire,  president  of  his  majesty's  council  in  Virginia  :  and 
a  copy  of  said  letter  being  procured,  a  motion  was  made,  that  the  copy 
should  be  laid  before  the  committee,  and  considered.  The  copy  was  read, 
and  is  as  follows  : 

'  Fowey,  May  4,  1775. 
'Sir, 

'  I  have  this  morning  received  certain  information  that  his  excellency 
the  lord  Dunmore,  governor  of  Virginia,  is  threatened  with  an  attack  at  day- 
break this  morning,  at  his  palace  in  Williamsburg,  and  have  thought  proper 
to  send  a  detachment  from  his  majesty's  ship  under  my  command,  to  sup- 
port his  excellency;  therefore  strongly  pray  you  to  make  use  of  every  endea- 
vour to  prevent  the  party  from  being  molested  and  attacked,  as  in  that  case, 
I  must  be  under  a  necessity  to  fire  upon  this  town.     From 

'  Geobge  Montague.' 
'  To  the  hon.  Thomas  Nelson.' 

"  The  committee,  together  with  capt.  Montague's  letter  taking  into  con- 
sideration the  time  of  its  being  sent,  which  was  too  late  to  permit  the  presi- 
dent to  use  his  influence,  had  the  inhabitants  been  disposed  to  molest  and 
attack  the  detachment ;  and  further  considering  that  col.  Nelson,  who,  had 
this  threat  been  carried  into  execution,  must  have  been  a  principal  sufferer, 
was  at  that  very  moment  exertinghis  utmost  endeavours  in  behalf  of  govern- 
ment, and  the  safety  of  his  excellency's  person,  unanimously  come  to  the 
following  resolutions : 

"  Resolved,  That  capt.  Montague  in  threatening  to  fire  upon  a  defenceless 
town,.incase  of  an  attack  upon  the  detachment,  in  which  said  town  might  not  be 


144  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

ed  to  apprehend  that  the  public  treasury  would  be  the 
next  object  of  depredation,  and  that  a  pretext  would  be 
sought  for  it,  in  the  reprisal  which  had  just  been  made. 
He  therefore  addressed,  from  Doncastle's,  the  following 
letter  to  Robert  Carter  Nicholas,  esq.  the  treasurer  of 
the  colony. 

«'  May  4, 1775. 

"Sir, 

"  The  affair  of  the  powder  is  now  settled,  so  as  to 
produce  satisfaction  to  me,  and  I  earnestly  wish  to  the 
colony  in  general.  The  people  here,  have  it  in  charge 
from  Hanover  committee,  to  tender  their  service  to 
you,  as  a  public  officer,  for  the  purpose  of  escorting 
the  public  treasury  to  any  place  in  this  colony,  where 
the  money  would  be  judged  more  safe  than  in  the  city 
of  Williamsburg.  The  reprisal  now  made  by  the 
Hanover  volunteers,  though  accomplished  in  a  manner 
least  liable  to  the  imputation  of  violent  extremity,  may 
possibly  be  the  cause  of  future  injury  to  the  treasury. 
If,  therefore,  you  apprehend  the  least  danger,  a  suffi- 
cient guard  is  at  your  service.  I  beg  the  return  of  the 
bearer  may  be  instant,  because  the  men  wish  to  know 


c  oncerned,  has  testified  a  spirit  of  cruelty  unprecedented  in  the  annals  of  civiliz- 
ed times;  that,  in  his  late  notice  to  the  president,  he  has  added  iilsult  to  cruelty; 
and  that,  considering  the  circumstances  already  mentioned,  of  one  of  the 
most  considerable  inhabitants  of  said  town,  he  has  discovered  the  most  hellish 
principles  that  can  actuate  a  human  mind. 

"  Resolved,  That  it  be  recommended  to  the  inhabitants  of  this  town,  and 
to  the  country  in  general,  that  they  do  not  entertain  or  show  any  other 
mark  of  civility  to  capt.  Montague,  besides  what  common  decency  and 
absolute  necessity  require. 

"  Resolved,  That  the  clerk  do  transmit  the  above  proceedings  to  the  pub- 
lic printers  to  be  inserted  in  the  Virginia  gazettes. 
(A  true  copy.) 

"  Wiluam  Russell,  Clk.  Com." 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  145 

their  destination.     With  great  regard,  I  am,  sir,  your 
most  humble  servant, 

"Patrick  Henry,  jun." 

To  this  letter,  an  answer  was  received  from  Mr.  Nicho- 
las, importing  that  he  had  no  apprehension  of  the 
necessity,  or  propriety  of  the  proffered  service:  and  Mr. 
Henry  understanding  also,  that  the  private  citizens  of 
Williamsburg,  were  in  a  great  measure  quieted  from 
their  late  fears  for  their  persons  and  property,  judged 
it  proper  to  proceed  no  farther.  Their  expedition  hav- 
ing been  crowned  with  success,  the  volunteers  return- 
ed in  triumph  to  their  respective  homes.  The  commit- 
tee of  Hanover  again  met;  gave  them  their  warmest 
thanks  for  the  vigour  and  propriety  with  which  they 
had  conducted  the  enterprise;  and  returned  their  ac- 
knowledgments, in  suitable  terms,  to  the  many  volun- 
teers of  the  different  counties,  who  joined  and  were 
marching,  and  ready  to  co-operate  with  the  volunteer 
company  of  Hanover. 

Two  days  after  the  return  of  the  volunteers,  and 
when  all  was  again  quiet,  the  governor  thundered  the 
following  anathema  from  the  palace: 

"  By  his  excellency,  the  right  hon.  John  Earl  of 
Dunmore,  his  majesty's  lieutenant  and  governor  gene- 
ral of  the  colony  and  dominion  of  Virginia,  and  vice 
admiral  of  the  same: 


"a  proclamation. 


«  Virginia,  to  wit: 


(C 


Whereas,  I  have  been  informed,  from  undoubt- 
ed authority,  that  a  certain  Patrick  Henry,  of  the  county 
of  Hanover,  and  a  number  of  deluded  followers,  have 
taken  up  arms,  chosen  their  officers,  and  styling  them- 

T 


14(5  .SKETCHES  OF  THE 

selves  an  Independent  Company,  have  marched  out  of 
their  county,  encamped,  and  put  themselves  in  a  pos- 
ture of  war;  and  have  written  and  despatched  letters 
to  divers  parts  of  the  country,  exciting  the  people  to  join 
in  these  outrageous  and  rebellious  practices,  to  the  great 
terror  of  all  his  majesty's  faithful  subjects,  and  in  open 
defiance  of  law  and  government;  and  have  committed 
other  acts  of  violence,  particularly  in  extorting  from  his 
majesty's  receiver  general,  the  sum  of  three  hundred 
and  thirty  pounds,  under  pretence  of  replacing  the  pow- 
der, I  thought  proper  to  order  from  the  magazine; 
whence  it  undeniably  appears,  that  there  is  no  longer 
the  least  security  for  the  life  or  property  of  any 
man;  wherefore  I  have  thought  proper,  with  the 
advice  of  his  majesty's  council,  and  in  his  majesty's 
name,  to  issue  this  my  proclamation,  strictly  charging 
all  persons  upon  their  allegiance,  not  to  aid,  abet, 
or  give  countenance  to  the  said  Patrick  Henry,  or 
any  other  persons  concerned  in  such  unwarrantable 
combinations;  but,  on  the  contrary,  to  oppose  them  and 
their  designs  by  every  means;  which  designs  must 
otherwise,  inevitably  involve  the  whole  country  in  the 
most  direful  calamity,  as  they  will  call  for  the  vengeance 
of  offended  majesty,  and  the  insulted  laws,  to  be  exerted 
here  to  vindicate  the  constitutional  authority  of  govern- 
ment. 

"  Given  under  my  hand  and  the  seal  of  the  colony, 
at  Williamsburg,  this  6th  day  of  May,  1775,  and 
in  the  15th  year  of  his  majesty's  reign. 

Dunmore. 
".  God  save  the  King." 

But  lord  Dunmore's  threats  and  denunciations,  had 
no  other  effect  than  to  render  more  conspicuous  and 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  14-7 

more  honourable  the  man  who  was  the  object  of  them. 
Mr.  Henry,  who  had  been  on  the  point  of  setting  out 
for  congress  at  the  time  when  he  had  been  called  off  by 
the  intelligence  from  Williamsburg,  now  resumed  his 
journey,  and  was  escorted  in  triumph,  by  a  large  party 
of  gentlemen,  as  far  as  Hooe's  ferry  on  the  Potomack. 
Messengers  were  sent  after  him  from  all  directions, 
bearing  the  thanks  and  the  applauses  of  his  assembled 
countrymen,  for  his  recent  enterprise:  and  in  such 
throngs  did  these  addresses  come,  that  the  necessity  of 
halting  to  read  and  answer  them,  converted  a  journey 
of  one  day,  into  a  triumph  of  many.  Thus,  the  same 
man,  whose  genius  had  in  the  year  1 765  given  the  first 
political  impulse  to  the  revolution,  had  now  the  addi- 
tional honour  of  heading  the  first  military  movement  in 
Virginia,  in  support  of  the  same  cause. 


148  SKETCHES  OF  THE 


SECTION  VI. 

I  cannot  learn  that  Mr.  Henry  distinguished  himself 
peculiarly,  at  this  session  of  congress.  The  spirit  of 
resistance  was  sufficiently  excited;  and  nothing  remain- 
ed but  to  organize  that  resistance,  and  to  plan  and 
execute  the  details  which  were  to  give  it  effect.  In 
business  of  this  nature,  Mr.  Hemy,  as  we  have  seen, 
was  not  efficient.  It  has  been  already  stated,  that  he 
was  unsuccessful  in  composition,  of  which  much  was 
done,  and  eminently  done,  at  this  session;  and  the  lax 
habits  of  his  early  life,  had  implanted  in  him  an  insu- 
perable aversion  to  the  drudgery  of  details.  He  could 
not  endure  confinement  of  any  sort,  nor  the  labour  of 
close  and  solitary  thinking.  His  habits  were  all  social, 
and  his  mind  delighted  in  unlimited  range.  His  conclu- 
sions were  never  reached  by  an  elaborate  deduction  of 
thought;  he  gained  them  as  it  were  per  saltum;  yet  with 
a  certainty  not  less  infallible  than  that  of  the  driest  and 
severest  logician.  It  is  not  wonderful  therefore,  that  he 
felt  himself  lost  amid  the  operations  in  which  congress 
was  now  engaged;  and  that  he  enjoyed  the  relief  which 
was  afforded  him,  by  a  military  appointment  from  his  na- 
tive state.  It  will  be  proper,  however,  to  explain  particu- 
larly the  proceedings  which  led  to  this  incident  in  the 
life  of  Mr.  Henry. 

Shortly  after  the  affair  of  the  gunpowder,  lord  North's 
conciliatory  proposition,  popularly  called  the  Olive 
Branch,  arrived  in  America.  Hereupon,  the  governor 
of  Virginia  called  a  meeting  of  the  house  of  burgesses; 
and  as  if  the  quarrel  were  now  completely  over,  lady 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  149 

Dunmore  and  her  family  returned  from  the  Fowey  to 
the  palace.* 

On  Thursday,  the  first  of  June,  the  general  assembly, 
according  to  the  proclamation  of  lord  Dunmore,  met  at 
the  capitol  in  the  city  of  Williamsburg.  He  addressed 
them  with  great  earnestness  on  the  alarming  state  of  the 
colony;  and  exhibited  the  conciliatory  proposition  of 
the  British  ministry,  as  an  advance  on  the  part  of  the 
mother  country,  which  it  was  the  duty  of  the  colonists 
to  meet  with  gratitude  and  devotion.  The  council 
answered  him  in  a  manner  perfectly  satisfactory;  but 
before  he  could  receive  the  answer  of  the  house  of  bur- 
gesses, an  incident  occurred,  which  drove  his  lordship 
precipitately  from  his  palace,  and  terminated  for  ever 
all  friendly  relations  between  himself  and  the  people  of 
Virginia. 

It  seems,  that  during  the  late  ferment  produced  by  the 

*  If  an  estimate  may  be  formed  from  the  newspapers  of  the  day,  into  which 
the  people  seem  to  have  poured  their  feelings  without  reserve,  that  lady 
was  eminently  a  favourite  in  this  colony.  Her  residence  here  had  been 
short ;  yet  the  exalted  virtues  which  marked  her  character,  and  those  domes- 
tic graces  and  attractions,  which  shone  with  the  more  lustre  by  contrast 
with  his  lordship,  had  already  endeared  her  to  the  people ;  and  would  have 
consecrated  her  person,  and  those  of  her  children,  amid  the  wildest  tumult 
to  which  this  colony  could  possibly  be  excited.  The  people  had  been  ex- 
tremely wounded  by  her  late  departure  for  the  Fowey  :  they  considered  it 
as  a  measure  of  his  lordship's,  and  as  an  unjust  reflection  both  upon  the 
judgment  and  generosity  of  the  people  of  this  country.  They  had  told  him 
intelligibly  enough,  that  they  had  formed  a  much  more  correct  estimate  of 
her  worth  than  he  himself  appeared  to  have  done  ;  and  that  so  far  from  her 
being  insecure  in  the  bosom  of  a  people  who  thus  admired,  respected,  and 
loved  her,  his  lordship  would  have  acted  much  more  wisely  to  have  kept  her 
near  his  person,  and  covered  himself  under  the  sacred  shield  which  sancti- 
fied her  in  the  eyes  of  Virginians.  In  proportion  to  their  regret  and  mortifi- 
cation at  her  departure,  was  the  ardour  of  delight  with  which  they  hailed 
her  return.  A  paragraph  in  Purdie's  paper  assured  her,  "  that  her  arrival 
at  the  palace  was  to  the  great  joy  of  the  citizens  of  Williamsburg  and  of 
the  people  of  the  whole  country,  who  had  the  most  unfeigned  regard  and 
affection  for  her  ladyship,  and  wished  her  long  to  live  amongst  them." 


150  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

removal  of  the  powder,  and  while  Mr.  Henry  was  on 
his  march  towards  Williamsburg,  some  of  the  inha- 
bitants of  the  town,  to  the  great  offence  of  the  graver 
citizens,  had  possessed  themselves  of  a  few  of  the  guns 
which  still  remained  in  the  magazine.  This  step  gave 
great  displeasure  as  well  as  alarm  to  the  governor-,  and 
although  the  mayor  and  council,  as  well  as  all  the  more 
respectable  inhabitants  of  the  town,  condemned  it  in 
terms  as  strong  as  his  own,  and  sincerely  united  in  the 
means  which  were  used  to  recover  the  arms,  yet  his 
lordship  continued  to  brood  over  it  in  secret,  until,  with 
the  aid  of  the  minions  of  the  palace,  he  hatched  a 
scheme  of  low  and  cruel  revenge,  sufficient  of  itself  to 
cover  him  with  immortal  infamy.  It  was  on  Monday 
night,  the  5th  of  June,  that  this  scheme  discovered  itself. 
"  Last  Monday  night/'  says  Purdie,  "  an  unfortunate 
accident  happened  to  two  persons  of  this  city,  who,  with 
a  number  of  others,  had  assembled  at  the  magazine,  to 
furnish  themselves  with  arms.  Upon  their  entering  the 
door,  one  of  the  guns,  which  had  a  spring  to  it,  and 
was  charged  eight  fingers  deep  with  swan  shot,  went 
off,  and  lodged  two  balls  in  one  of  their  shoulders, 
another  entered  at  his  wrist,  and  is  not  yet  extracted;  the 
other  person  had  one  of  his  fingers  shot  off,  and  the  next 
to  it  so  much  shattered  as  to  render  it  useless,  by  which 
sad  misfortune,  he  is  deprived  of  the  means  of  procuring 
a  livelihood  by  his  business.  Spring  guns,  it  seems, 
were  placed  at  other  parts  of  the  magazine,  of  which 
the  public  were  totally  ignorant;  and  certainly  had  any 
person  lost  his  life,  the  perpetrator  or  perpetrators  of 
this  diabolical  invention,  might  have  been  justly  branded 
with  the  opprobrious  title  of  murderers.  0  temporal 
O  mores!" 
The  indignation  naturally  excited  by  this  piece  of 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  151 

deliberate  and  barbarous  treachery,  which  was  at  once 
traced  to  lord  Dunmore,  was  farther  aggravated  by  a 
discovery  that  several  barrels  of  powder  had  been  buri- 
ed in  the  magazine,  with  the  purpose,  it  was  reasonably 
conjectured,  of  being  used  as  a  mine,  and  thus  produc- 
ing still  more  fatal  destruction,  when  the  occasion 
should  offer.  Early  on  the  next  morning,  lord  Dun- 
more  with  his  family,  including  captain  Foy,  fled  from 
the  palace  to  return  to  it  no  more,  and  took  shelter  on 
board  the  Fowey,  from  the  vengeance  which  he  knew 
he  so  justly  deserved.  No  commotion,  however,  had  en- 
sued to  justify  his  retreat.  The  people,  indeed,  were 
highly  indignant,  but  they  were  silent  and  quiet.  The 
suggestions  of  his  lordship's  conscience,  had  alone  pro- 
duced his  flight.  He  left  behind  him  a  message  to  the 
speaker  and  house  of  burgesses,  in  which  he  ascribed 
this  movement  to  apprehensions  for  his  personal  safety; 
stated  that  he  should  fix  his  residence  on  board  the 
Fowey;  that  no  interruption  should  be  given  to  the 
sitting  of  the  assembly;  that  he  should  make  the  access 
to  him  easy  and  safe;  and  thought  it  would  be  more 
agreeable  to  the  house  to  send  to  him  from  time  to  time, 
one  or  more  of  their  members  as  occasion  might  re- 
quire,  than  to  put  the  whole  body  to  the  trouble  of  mov- 
ing to  be  near  him. 

On  receiving  this  message,  the  house  immediately 
resolved  itself  into  a  committee  of  the  whole,  and  pre- 
pared an  answer,  in  which  they  expressed  their  deep 
concern  at  the  step  which  he  had  taken — assuring  him 
that  his  apprehensions  of  personal  danger  were  entirely 
unfounded;  regretting  that  he  had  not  expressed  them 
to  the  house  previous  to  his  departure,  since  from  their 
zeal  and  attachment  to  the  preservation  of  order  and 
good  government,  they  should  have  judged  it  their  in- 


152  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

dispensable  duty  to  have  endeavoured  to  remove  any 
cause  of  disquietude.  They  express  the  anxiety  with 
which  they  contemplate  the  very  disagreeable  situation 
of  his  most  amiable  lady  and  her  family,  and  assure  him, 
that  they  should  think  themselves  happy  in  being  able 
to  restore  their  perfect  tranquillity,  by  removing  all  then- 
fears.  They  regret  his  departure  and  the  manner  of 
it,  as  tending  to  keep  up  the  great  uneasiness,  which 
had  of  late  so  unhappily  prevailed  in  this  country;  and 
declare  that  they  will  cheerfully  concur  in  any  measure 
that  may  be  proposed,  proper  for  the  security  of  himself 
and  his  family;  they  remind  him  how  impracticable  it 
will  be  to  carry  on  the  business  of  the  session  with  any 
tolerable  degree  of  propriety,  or  with  that  despatch 
which  the  advanced  season  of  the  year  required,  whilst 
his  lordship  was  so  far  removed  from  them,  and  so  in- 
conveniently situated;  and  conclude,  with  entreating 
him  that  he  would  be  pleased  to  return  with  his  lady 
and  family  to  the  palace,  which,  they  say,  they  are  per- 
suaded will  give  the  greatest  satisfaction,  and  be  the 
most  likely  means  of  quieting  the  minds  of  the  people. 
This  communication  was  carried  down  to  him  by  a 
deputation  of  two  members  of  the  council,  and  four  of 
the  house  of  burgesses;  and  in  reply  to  language  so 
respectful,  and  assurances  so  friendly  and  conciliatory, 
his  lordship  returned  an  answer  in  which  he  charged 
them  with  having  slighted  his  offers  of  respect  and  civi- 
lity, with  giving  countenance  to  the  violent  and  disor- 
derly proceedings  of  the  people,  and  with  an  usurpation 
of  the  executive  power  in  ordering  and  appointing 
guards  to  mount  in  the  city  of  Williamsburg,  with  the 
view,  as  was  pretended  to  protect  the  magazine,  but 
which  might  well  be  doubted,  as  there  then  remained 
nothing  therein  which  required  being  guarded:  he  ex- 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  153 

horts  them  to  return  within  the  pale  of  their  constitu- 
tional power;  to  redress  the  many  grievances  which 
existed;  to  open  the  courts  of  justice;  to  disarm  the 
independent  companies;  and  what  was  not  less  essen- 
tial, by  their  own  example,  and  every  means  in  their 
power,  to  abolish  the  spirit  of  persecution  which  pursued 
with  menaces  and  acts  of  oppression,  all  his  majesty's 
loyal  and  orderly  subjects.  For  the  accomplishment  of 
which  ends,  he  invited  them  to  adjourn  to  the  town  of 
York,  opposite  to  which  the  Fowey  lay,  where  he  promis- 
ed to  meet  and  remain  with  them  till  their  business  should 
be  finished.  But  with  respect  to  their  entreaty  that  he 
would  return  to  the  palace,  he  represents  to  them  that 
unless  they  closed  in  with  the  conciliatory  proposition 
now  offered  to  them  by  the  British  parliament,  his 
return  to  Williamsburg  would  be  as  fruitless  to  the 
people,  as  possibly  it  might  be  dangerous  to  himself. 
So  that  he  places  the  event  of  his  returning,  on  their 
acceptance  of  lord  North's  offer  of  conciliation. 

The  house  of  burgesses  now  took  up  that  propo- 
sition; and  having  examined  it  in  every  light,  with 
the  utmost  attentoin,  they  conclude  with  a  firm  and 
dignified  rejection  of  it,  and  an  appeal  "  to  the  even- 
handed  justice  of  that  Being  who  doth  no  wrong; 
earnestly  beseeching  him  to  illuminate  the  councils,  and 
prosper  the  endeavours,  of  those  to  whom  America  had 
confided  her  hopes,  that  through  their  wise  direction, 
we  may  again  see  re-united,  the  blessings  of  liberty  and 
prosperity,  and  the  most  permanent  harmony  with  Great 
Britain."* 


*  This  vigorous  and  eloquent  production  is  from  the  same  pen  which 
drew  the  Declaration  of  American  Independence. 

U 


154  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

A  correspondence  on  another  topic  was  now  opened 
between  the  council  and  burgesses,  and  the  gover- 
nor Dunmpre.  The  former  addressed  him  with  a  re- 
quest, that  he  would  order  a  large  parcel  of  arms  which 
he  had  left  in  the  palace  to  be  removed  to  the  public 
magazine,  a  place  of  greater  safety.  This  he  peremptorily 
refused;  and  ordered  that  those  arms,  belonging  to  the 
king,  should  not  be  touched  without  his  express  permis- 
sion. In  their  reply,  they  say,  that  the  arms  may  in  some 
sort  be  considered  as  belonging  to  the  king,  as  the  supreme 
head  of  the  government,  and  that  they  were  properly  under 
his  lordship's  direction;  yet,  they  humbly  conceived,  that 
they  were  originally  provided,  and  had  been  preserved, 
for  the  use  of  the  country  in  cases  of  emergency.  The 
palace,  they  say,  had  indeed  been  hitherto  much  respect- 
ed, but  not  so  much  out  of  regard  to  the  building,  as 
the  residence  of  his  majesty's'  representative.  Had  his 
lordship  thought  fit  to  remain  there,  they  would  have  had 
no  apprehensions  of  danger;  but  considering  these 
arms  at  present,  as  exposed  to  his  lordship's  servants, 
and  every  rude  invader,  the  security  derived  from  his 
lordship's  presence  could  not  now  be  relied  on.  They 
therefore,  again  entreat  him  to  order  the  removal  of  the 
arms  to  the  magazine.  They  then  proceed  to  state, 
that  they  cannot  decline  representing  to  him,  that  the 
important  business  of  the  assembly  had  been  much  im- 
peded by  his  excellency's  removal  from  the  palace — 
that  this  step  had  deprived  them  of  that  free  and  neces- 
sary access  to  his  lordship,  to  which  they  were  entitled 
by  the  constitution  of  the  country — that  there  were 
several  bills  of  the  last  importance  to  the  country  now 
ready  to  be  presented  to  his  excellency  for  his  assent. 
They  complain  of  the  inconvenience  to  which  they  had 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  155 

been  put  in  sending  their  members  twelve  miles  to  wait 
on  his  excellency,  on  board  of  one  of  his  majesty's  ships 
of  war,  to  present  their  addresses — they  state  that  they 
think  it  would  be  highly  improper,  and  too  great  a  de- 
parture from  the  constitutional  and  accustomed  mode 
of  transacting  business,  to  meet  his  excellency  at  any 
other  place  than  the  capitol,  to  present  such  bills  as  were 
ready  for  his  signature — and  therefore,  beseech  him  to 
return  for  this  purpose. 

To  all  this  he  gave  a  very  short  answer;  that  as  to 
the  arms,  he  had  already  declared  his  intention,  and 
conceived  they  were  meddling  with  a  subject  which  did 
not  belong  to  them :  he  desired  to  know  whom  they 
designed  by  the  term  rude  invader;  that  the  disorders 
in  Williamsburg  and  other  parts  of  the  country,  had 
driven  him  from  the  palace;  and  that  if  any  inconve- 
nience had  arisen  to  the  assembly  on  that  account,  he 
was  not  chargeable  with  it;  that  they  had  not  been 
deprived  of  any  necessary  or  free  access  to  him;  that 
the  constitution  undoubtedly  vested  him  with  the  power 
of  calling  the  assembly  to  any  place  in  the  colony,  which 
exigency  might  require;  that  not  having  been  made 
acquainted  with  the  whole  proceedings  of  the  assembly, 
he  knew  of  no  bills  of  importance,  which  if  he  were 
inclined  to  risk  his  person  again  among  the  people,  the 
assembly  had  to  present  to  him,  nor  whether  they  were 
such  as  he  could  assent  to. 

In  the  course  of  their  correspondence  he  required 
the  house  to  attend  him  on  board  the  Fowey,  for  the 
purpose  of  obtaining  his  signature  to  the  bills;  and  some 
of  the  members,  to  prevent  an  actual  dissolution  of  the 
government,  and  to  give  effect  to  the  many  necessary 
bills  which  they  had    passed,   proposed  to  yield  to 


156  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

this  extraordinary  requisition.  The  project,  however, 
was  exploded  by  a  member's  rising  in  his  place,  and 
relating  the  fable  of  the  sick  lion  and  the  fox. 

The  governor  having  thus  virtually  abdicated  his 
office,  the  government  was,  in  effect,  dissolved.  The 
house  hereupon  resolved,  "  That  his  lordship's  message, 
requiring  the  house  to  attend  him  on  board  one  of  his 
majesty's  ships  of  war,  is  a  high  breach  of  the  rights 
and  privileges  of  this  house."  "  That  the  unreasonable 
delays  thrown  into  the  proceedings  of  this  house  by  the 
governor,  and  his  evasive  answers  to  the  sincere  and 
decent  addresses  of  the  representatives  of  the  people, 
give  us  great  reason  to  fear,  that  a  dangerous  attack 
may  be  meditated  against  the  unhappy  people  of  this 
colony."  "  It  is,  therefore,  our  opinion,  they  say,  that 
they  prepare  for  the  preservation  of  their  property,  and 
their  inestimable  rights  and  liberties  with  the  greatest 
care  and  attention:"  "  That  we  do  and  will  bear  faith 
and  true  allegiance  to  our  most  gracious  sovereign 
George  the  III.  our  only  lawful  and  rightful  king;  that 
we  will,  at  all  times,  to  the  utmost  of  our  power,  and  at 
the  risk  of  our  lives  and  properties,  maintain  and  defend 
his  government  in  this  colony,  as  founded  on  the  esta- 
blished laws  and  principles  of  the  constitution:  That 
it  is  our  most  earnest  desire  to  preserve  and  strengthen 
those  bonds  of  amity,  with  all  our  fellow-subjects  in 
Great  Britain,  which  are  so  very  essential  to  the  pros- 
perity and  happiness  of  both  countries."  Having 
adopted  these  resolutions  without  a  dissenting  voice, 
they  adjourned  themselves  to  the  12th  of  October 
following;  and  the  delegates  were  summoned  to 
meet  in  convention  at  the  town  of  Richmond,  on  the 
17th  of  July.* 

*  On  this  occasion,  Richard  H.  Lee,  standing-  with  two  of  the  burgesses  in 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  157 

Immediately  on  the  adjournment  of  the  house  of 
burgesses,  a  very  full  meeting  of  the  citizens  of  Wil- 
liamsburg, convened  on  the  call  of  Peyton  Randolph, 
at  the  court  house  in  that  city,  "to  consider  of  the 
expediency  of  stationing  a  number  of  men  there,  for 
the  public  safety;  as  well  to  assist  the  citizens  in  their 
nightly  watches,  as  to  guard  against  any  surprise  from 
our  enemies;"  whereupon,  it  was  unanimously  agreed 
(until  the  general  convention  should  meet)  to  invite 
down  from  a  number  of  counties,  to  the  amount  of  two 
hundred  and  fifty  men.  Meanwhile,  until  they  arrived, 
the  neighbouring  counties,  they  say,  were  kind  enough 
to  lend  them  their  assistance. 

On  the  29th  of  June,  the  Fowey  ship,  and  Magdalen 
schooner  sailed  from  York;  on  board  the  latter  went 
lady  Dunmore,  and  the  rest  of  the  governor's  family, 
bound  for  England;  and  the  colony  was  for  a  short  time 
relieved  by  the  report,  that  the  Fowey  carried  lord  Dun- 
more  and  captain  Foy,  on  a  visit  to  general  Gage,  at 
Boston.  This  report,  however,  was  unfounded.  The 
Fowey  merely  escorted  the  Magdalen  to  the  capes,  and 
then  returned  again  to  her  moorings  before  York. 
The  Otter  sloop  of  war,  commanded  by  capt.  Squire, 
thereupon  fell  down  to  the  mouth  of  York  river,  with 
the  intention  of  cruising  along  the  coast,  and  seizing  all 
provision  vessels;  and  soon  became  distinguished,  at 
least,  for  the  malignity  of  her  attempts.  The  Fowey  was 
relieved  by  the  ship  Mercury  of  24  guns,  John  Macart- 


the  porch  of  the  capitol,  inscribed  with  his  pencil  on  a  pillar  of  the  capitol, 
these  prophetic  lines,  from  Shakspeare  : 

"  When  shall  we  three  meet  again  ? 
In  thunder,  lightning,  and  in  rain ; 
When  the  hurly-burly's  done, 
When  the  battle's  lost  and  won." 


158  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

ney,  commander,  and  departed  for  Boston,  carrying 
with  her  the  now  obnoxious  capt.  Foy.  The  governor's 
domestics  left  the  palace,  and  removed  to  his  farm  at 
Montibello,  about  six  miles  below  Williamsburg;  and 
the  governor,  himself,  fixed  his  station  at  the  town  of 
Portsmouth.  In  this  posture  of  things,  on  Monday,  the 
24th  of  July,  1775,  the  colonial  convention  met  at  the 
city  of  Richmond. 

The  proceedings  of  this  convention  were  marked  by 
a  character  of  great  decision  and  vigour.  One  of  their 
first  measures  was  an  ordinance  for  raising  and  embo- 
dying a  sufficient  force  for  the  defence  and  protection  of 
this  colony.  By  this  ordinance,  it  was  provided,  that  two 
regiments  of  regulars,  to  consist  of  one  thousand  and 
twenty  privates  rank  and  file,  should  be  forthwith  raised 
and  taken  into  the  pay  of  the  colony;  and  a  competent 
regular  force  was  also  provided  for  the  protection  of 
the  western  frontier.  The  whole  colony  was  divided 
into  sixteen  military  districts;  with  a  provision,  that  a 
regiment  of  six  hundred  and  eighty  men,  rank  and  file, 
should  be  raised  on  the  eastern  shore  district,  and  a  bat- 
talion of  five  hundred  in  each  of  the  others;  to  be  forth- 
with armed,  trained,  furnished  with  all  military  accou- 
trements, and  ready  to  march  at  a  minute's  warning. 

A  committee,  called  the  committee  of  safety,  was  also 
organized,  with  functions  and  powers  analogous  to 
those  of  the  executive  department;  and  apparently 
designed  to  supply  the  vacancy  occasioned  by  the  gover- 
nor's abdication  of  that  branch  of  the  government. 

The  convention  now  proceeded  to  the  appointment 
of  officers  to  command  the  regular  forces.  The  lofty 
stand  which  Mr.  Henry  had  taken  in  the  American 
cause,  his  increasing  popularity,  and  the  prompt  and 
energetic  movement  which  he  had  made  in  the  affair  of 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  159 

the  gunpowder,  brought  him  strongly  before  the  view 
of  the  house;  and  he  was  elected  the  colonel  of  the 
first  regiment,  and  the  commander  of  all  the  forces 
raised,  and  to  be  raised,  for  the  defence  of  the  colony. 
Mr.  William  Woodford,  who  is  said  to  have  distin- 
guished himself  in  the  French  and  Indian  war,  was 
appointed  to  the  command  of  the  second  regiment. 

The  place  of  rendezvous  for  the  troops  was  the  city 
of  Williamsburg.  Mr.  Henry  was  at  his  post  on  the 
20th  of  September,  examining  the  grounds  adjacent  to 
the  city,  for  the  purpose  of  selecting  an  encampment; 
and  the  place  chosen  was  at  the  back  of  William  and 
Mary  college.  The  troops  were  recruited  and  poured 
in  with  wonderful  rapidity.  The  papers  of  the  day 
teem  with  the  annunciation  of  company  after  company, 
both  regulars  and  minute  men,  with  the  highest  enco- 
miums on  the  appearance  and  spirit  of  the  troops;  and 
had  the  purpose  been  offensive  war,  col.  Henry  was 
soon  in  a  situation  to  have  annihilated  any  force  that 
lord  Dunmore  could  at  that  time,  have  arrayed  against 
him.  But  there  was,  in  truth,  something  extremely 
singular  and  embarrassing  in  the  situation  of  the  parties 
in  regard  to  each  other.  It  was  not  war,  nor  was  it  peace. 
The  very  ordinance  by  which  these  troops  were  raised, 
was  filled  with  professions  of  allegiance  and  fidelity  to 
George  the  III. — professions  whose  sincerity  there  is  the 
less  reason  to  doubt,  because  they  are  confined  to  the 
exercise  of  his  constitutional  powers,  and  stand  con- 
nected with  an  expression  of  their  firm  determination 
to  resist  any  attempt  on  the  liberties  of  the  country. 
The  only  intelligible  purpose,  therefore,  for  which  these 
troops  were  raised,  was  a  preparation  for  defence ;  and 
for  defence  against  an  attempt  to  enforce  the  parlia- 
mentary taxes  upon  this  colony.     With  respect  to  lord 


160  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

Dunmore,  he  was  indeed,  considered  as  having  aban- 
doned the  duties  of  his  office;  yet  still  he  was  regarded 
as  the  governor  of  Virginia;  and  there  seems  to  have 
been  no  disposition  to  offer  violence  to  his  person. 

Dunmore,  on  his  part,  considered  the  colony  as  in  a 
state  of  open  and  general  rebellion ;  not  merely  design- 
ing to  resist  an  attempt  to  enforce  upon  them  an  obnox- 
ious tax;  but  to  subvert  the  regal  government  wholly 
and  entirely;  and  had  his  power  been  equal  to  his 
wishes,  there  is  no  reason  to  doubt  that  he  would  have 
disarmed  the  colony;  and  hung  up,  without  ceremony, 
the  leaders  of  this  traitorous  revolt,  as  he  affected  to 
consider  it.  His  impotence  however,  and  the  aversion 
of  the  colonists  to  act  otherwise  than  defensively,  pro- 
duced a  suspense  full  of  the  most  painful  anxiety. 

In  the  mean  time,  capt.  Squire,  commander  of  his 
majesty's  sloop  the  Otter,  had  been  labouring  through- 
out the  summer  with  some  success,  to  change  the  defen- 
sive attitude  of  the  colony.  He  was  engaged  in  cruising 
continually  in  James  and  York  rivers,  plundering  the 
defenceless  shores,  and  carrying  off  the  slaves,  wherever 
seduction  or  force  could  place  them  in  his  power. 
These  piratical  excursions  had  wrought  up  the  citizens 
who  were  not  in  arms,  to  a  very  high  pitch  of  resent- 
ment; and  an  accident  soon  gave  them  an  opportunity 
of  partial  reprisal,  which  they  did  not  fail  to  seize.  On 
the  2d  of  September,  the  captain,  sailing  in  a  tender, 
on  a  marauding  expedition  from  James  to  York  river, 
was  encountered  by  a  violent  tempest,  and  his  tender 
was  driven  on  shore,  upon  Back  river,  near  Hampton. 
It  was  night,  and  the  storm  still  raging:- — the  captain 
and  his  men,  distrusting  (unjustly,  as  it  would  seem  from 
the  papers)  the  hospitality  of  the  inhabitants,  made  their 
escape  through  the  woods;  the  vessel  was  on  the  next 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  161 

day,  discovered  and  burnt  by  the  people  of  the  neigh- 
bourhood. In  consequence  of  this  act,  the  captain 
addressed  the  following  letter  to  the  committee  of  the 
town  of  Hampton: 

"  Otter  sloop,  Norfolk  river,  Sept.  10,  1775. 

"  Gentlemen, 

"  Whereas,  a  sloop  tender,  manned  and  armed  in  his 
majesty's  service,  was  on  Saturday  the  2d  instant,  in  a 
violent  gale  of  wind,  cast  on  shore  in  Back  river  Eliza- 
beth county,  having  on  board  the  undermentioned  king's 
stores,  which  the  inhabitants  of  Hampton  thought  pro- 
per to  seize:  I  am  therefore  to  desire,  that  the  king's 
sloop,  with  all  the  stores  belonging  to  her,  be  immediate- 
ly returned;  or  the  people  of  Hampton,  who  committed 
the  outrage,  must  be  answerable  for  the  consequences. 
I  am,  gentlemen,  your  humble  servant, 

"Matthew  Squire." 

This  letter,  with  a  catalogue  of  the  stores,  having 
been  communicated  to  the  committee  of  Williamsburg, 
and  by  them  having  been  laid  before  the  commanding 
officer  of  the  volunteers  of  that  place,  major  James 
Innes,  at  the  head  of  a  hundred  men,  who  courted  the 
enterprise,  flew  to  Hampton  to  repel  the  threatened 
invasion.  Squire,  however,  satisfied  himself  for  the 
present,  by  falling  down  to  Hampton  road,  where  he 
seized  the  passage  boats,  with  the  negroes  in  them,  by 
way  of  reprisal  as  he  alleged,  for  the  stores,  &c.  taken 
out  of  his  tender  when  driven  ashore  in  the  late  storm; 
"  which  boats  and  negroes,"  adds  Purdie's  paper  of  the 
day,  "  it  is  likely  he  intends  taking  into  the  king's  ser- 
vice, to  send  out  a-pirating  for  hogs,  fowls,  &c.  A  very 
pretty  occupation  for  the  captain  of  one  of  his  majesty's 
ships  of  war."    The  next  paper  announces  the  move- 

x 


162  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

merits  of  Squire  by  a  paragraph,  which  I  extract 
verbatim,  as  showing  in  an  amusing  light,  the  spirit  of 
the  times,  and  as  Camden  says,  "  the  plain  and  jolly 
mirth  of  our  ancestors,"  even  in  the  midst  of  misfor- 
tunes. a  We  hear  that  the  renowned  captain  Squire, 
of  his  majesty's  sloop  Otter,  is  gone  up  the  bay  for 
Baltimore  in  Maryland;  on  his  old  trade,  it  is  to  be 
presumed,  of  negro-catching,  pillaging  farms  and  plan- 
tations of  their  stock  and  poultry,  and  other  illustrious 
actions,  highly  becoming  a  Squire  in  the  king's  navy. 
Some  say,  his  errand  was  to  watch  for  a  quantity  of  gun- 
powder intended  for  this  colony;  but  that  valuable  is 
now  safely  landed  where  he  dare  not  come  to  smell 
it." 

The  same  paper  contains  the  following  answer  from 
the  committee  of  Hampton  to  Squire's  letter: 

"To  Matthew  Squire,  esq.  commander  of  his  majesty's 
sloop  Otter,  lying  in  Hampton  roads. 

"  Hampton,  September  16,  1775. 

"  Sir, 

"  Yours  of  the  10th  instant,  directed  to  the  commit- 
tee of  the  town  of  Hampton,  reciting,  that  a  sloop  tender 
on  his  majesty's  service,  was  on  the  2d  instant,  cast  on 
shore  near  this  place,  having  on  board  some  of  the 
king's  stores,  which  you  say  were  seized  by  the  inhabi- 
tants, and  demanding  an  immediate  return  of  the  same; 
or  that  the  people  of  Hampton  must  answer  the  conse- 
quences of  such  outrage,  was  this  day  laid  before  them, 
who  knowing  the  above  recital  to  be  injurious  and 
untrue,  think  proper  here  to  mention  the  facts  relative 
to  this  matter.  The  sloop,  we  apprehend,  was  not  in 
his  majesty's  service,  as  we  are  well  assured  that  you 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  163 

were  on  a  pillaging  or  pleasuring  party;  and  although  it 
gives  us  pain  to  use  indelicate  expressions,  yet  the  treat- 
ment received  from  you,  calls  for  a  state  of  the  facts 
in  the  simple  language  of  truth,  however  harsh  it  may 
sound.  To  your  own  heart  we  appeal  for  the  candour 
with  which  we  have  stated  them — to  that  heart  which 
drove  you  into  the  woods  in  the  most  tempestuous 
weather,  in  one  of  the  darkest  nights,  to  avoid  the  much 
injured  and  innocent  inhabitants  of  this  county,  who 
had  never  threatened  or  ill  used  you — and  who  would, 
at  that  time,  have  received  you,  we  are  assured,  with 
humanity  and  civility,  had  you  made  yourself  and  situa- 
tion known  to  them.  Neither  the  vessel  or  stores  were 
seized  by  the  inhabitants  of  Hampton;  the  gunner,  one 
Mr.  Gray — and  the  pilot,  one  Mr.  Ruth — who  were  em- 
ployed by  you  on  this  parry,  are  men  we  hope,  who 
will  still  assert  the  truth.  From  them,  divers  of  our 
members  were  informed,  that  the  vessel  and  stores, 
together  with  a  good  seine  (which  you,  without  cause, 
so  hastily  deserted)  were  given  up  as  irrecoverably  lost, 
by  the  officers,  and  some  of  the  proprietors,  to  one 
Finn,  near  whose  house  you  were  drove  on  shore,  as  a 
reward  for  his  entertaining  you,  &c.  with  respect  and 
decency. 

"The  threats  of  a  person  whose  conduct  hath 
evinced  that  he  was  not  only  capable,  but  desirous  of 
doing  us,  in  our  then  defenceless  state,  the  greatest  injus- 
tice, we  confess  were  somewhat  alarming;  but,  with  the 
greatest  pleasure,  we  can  inform  you,  our  apprehen- 
sions are  now  removed. 

"  Although  we  know  that  we  cannot  legally  be  called 
to  account  for  that  which  you  are  pleased  to  style  an 
outrage,  and  notwithstanding  we  have  hitherto,  by  you, 
been  treated  with  iniquity,  we  will,  as  far  as  in  our 


164  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

power  lies,   do  you   right  upon  just  and  equitable 
terms. 

"  First.  We,  on  behalf  of  the  community,  require 
from  you  the  restitution  of  a  certain  Joseph  Harris,  the 
property  of  a  gentleman  of  our  town,  and  all  other  our 
slaves  whom  you  may  have  on  board;  which  said  Harris, 
as  well  as  other  slaves,  hath  been  long  harboured,  and 
often  employed,  with  your  knowledge,  (as  appeared  to 
us  by  the  confession  of  Ruth  and  others,  and  is  well 
known  to  all  your  men)  in  pillaging  us  imder  cover  of 
night,  of  our  sheep  and  other  live  stock. 

"  Secondly.  We  require  that  you  will  send  on  shore 
all  boats,  with  their  hands,  and  every  other  thing  you 
have  detained  on  this  occasion. 

"  And  lastly.  That  you  shall  not  by  your  own  arbi- 
trary authority,  undertake  to  insult,  molest,  interrupt  or 
detain,  the  persons  or  property  of  any  one  passing  to 
and  from  this  town,  as  you  have  frequently  done  for 
some  time  past. 

"  Upon  complying  with  those  requisitions,  we  will 
endeavour  to  procure  every  article  left  on  our  shore, 
and  shall  be  ready  to  deliver  them  to  your  pilot  and 
gunner,  of  whose  good  behaviour  we  have  had  some 
proofs.     We  are,  &c. 

"  The  Committee  of  Elizabeth  City  county 
and  town  of  Hampton", 

In  the  mean  time  Squire's  threat  against  Hampton 
was  not  an  empty  one,  as  is  proven  by  the  following  ac- 
count of  the  attempt  to  execute  it:  the  article  is  extract- 
ed from  a  supplement  to  Purdie's  paper  of  October 
27th,  1775. 

"  After  lord  Dunmore,  with  his  troops  and  the  navy, 
had  been  for  several  weeks  seizing  the  persons  and  pro- 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  165 

perty  of  his  majesty's  peaceable  subjects  in  this  colony — 
on  Wednesday  night  last,  a  party  from  an  armed  ten- 
der landed  near  Hampton,  and  took  away  a  valuable 
negro  slave  and  a  sail  from  the  owner.  Next  morning 
there  appeared  off  the  mouth  of  Hampton  river,  a  large 
armed  schooner,  a  sloop,  and  three  tenders,  with  soldiers 
on  board,  and  a  message  was  received  at  Hampton  from 
captain  Squire,  on  board  the  schooner,  that  he  would 
that  day  land  and  burn  the  town;  on  which  a  company 
of  regulars,  and  a  company  of  minute  men,*  who  had 
been  placed  there  in  consequence  of  former  threats 
denounced  against  that  place,  made  the  best  disposition 
to  prevent  their  landing,  aided  by  a  body  of  militia  who 
were  suddenly  called  together  on  the  occasion.  The 
enemy  accordingly  attempted  to  land,  but  were  retard- 
ed by  some  boats  sunk  across  the  channel  for  that  pur- 
pose. Upon  this  they  fired  several  small  cannon  at  the 
provincials  without  any  effect,  who  in  return  discharged 
their  small  arms  so  effectually,  as  to  make  the  enemy 
move  off,  with  the  loss  of  several  men,  as  it  is  believed. 
But  they  had  in  the  mean  time,  burnt  down  a  house 
belonging  to  Mr.  Cooper,  on  the  river.  On  intelligence 
of  this  reaching  Williamsburg,  about  nine  o'clock  at 
night,  a  company  of  riflemen  was  dispatched  to  the  aid 
of  Hampton,  and  the  colonel  of  the  2d  regiment,  sent  to 
take  the  command  of  the  whole;  who,  with  the  company, 
arrived  about  eight  o'clock  next  morning.  The  enemy 
had  in  the  night  cut  through  the  boats  sunk,  and  made 
a  passage  for  their  vessels,  which  were  drawn  close  up 


*  Captain  George  Nicholas  commanded  the  regulars,  and  captain  Lyne 
the  minute  men;  captain  Nicholas  therefore,  as  being  in  the  regular  service, 
had  the  command  of  the  whole,  in  the  first  skirmish.  This  gentleman  was 
the  eldest  son  of  colonel  Robert  C.  Nicholas;  and  on  the  return  of  peace,  be- 
came highly  distinguished  both  as  a  politician  and  lawyer. 


166  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

to  the  town,  and  began  to  fire  upon  it  soon  after  the 
arrival  of  the  party  from  Williamsburg;  but  as  soon  as 
our  men  were  so  disposed  as  to  give  them  a  few  shot, 
they  went  off  so  hastily  that  our  people  took  a  small 
tender,  with  five  white  men,  a  woman,  and  two  slaves, 
six  swivels,  seven  muskets,  some  small  arms,  a  sword, 
pistols,  and  other  things,  and  several  papers  belonging 
to  lieutenant  Wright,  who  made  his  escape  by  jumping 
overboard  and  swimming  away  with  Mr.  King's  man, 
who  are  on  shore,  and  a  pursuit  it  is  hoped  may  over- 
take them.  There  were  two  of  the  men  in  the  vessel 
mortally  wounded;  one  is  since  dead,  and  the  other  near 
his  end.  Besides  which,  we  are  informed,  nine  were 
seen  to  be  thrown  overboard  from  one  of  the  vessels. 
We  have  not  a  man  even  wounded.  The  vessels  went 
over  to  Norfolk,  and  we  are  informed  the  whole  force 
from  thence  is  intended  to  visit  Hampton  this  day.  If 
they  should,  we  hope  our  brave  troops  are  prepared  for 
them ;  as  we  can  with  pleasure  assure  the  public,  that 
every  part  of  them,  behaved  with  spirit  and  bravery,  and 
are  wishing  for  another  skirmish." 

The  next  paper  contains  the  following  card  to  cap- 
tain Squire;  which  is  inserted  merely  as  another  speci- 
men of  the  character  of  the  times: 

"Williamsburg,  November  3d. 

"  The  riflemen  and  soldiers  of  Hampton,  desire  their 
compliments  to  captain  Squire  and  his  squadron,  and  wish 
to  know  how  they  approve  the  reception  they  met  with 
last  Friday.  Should  he  incline  to  renew  his  visit,  they 
will  be  glad  to  see  him;  otherwise,  in  point  of  com- 
plaisance, they  will  be  under  the  necessity  of  returning 
the  visit.  If  he  cannot  find  the  ear  that  was  cut  off, 
they  hope  he  will  wear  a  trig  to  hide  the  mark;  for 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  167 

perhaps  it  may  not  be  necessary  that  all  should  know 
chance  had  effected  that  which  the  laivs  ought  to  have 
done/' 

In  the  mean  time  lord  Dunmore,  with  a  motley  band 
of  tories,  negroes,  and  recruits  from  St.  Augustine's, 
was  "  cutting  such  fantastic  capers"  in  the  country 
round  about  Norfolk,  as  made  it  necessary  to  crush 
him  or  drive  him  from  the  state.  With  this  view,  the 
committee  of  safety  (who,  by  their  constitution,  were 
authorised  to  direct  all  military  movements)  detached 
colonel  Woodford  at  the  head  of  about  eight  hundred 
men,  to  cross  James  river  at  Sandy  Point,  and  go  in 
pursuit  of  his  lordship.  Colonel  Henry  himself  had 
been  anxious  for  this  service,  and  is  said  to  have  solicit- 
ed it  in  vain.  But  the  committee  of  safety*  seem  to 
have  distrusted  too  much  his  want  of  military  experi- 
ence, to  confide  to  him  so  important  an  enterprise. 
The  disgust  which  Mr.  Henry  had  conceived  at  this 
palpable  reflection  on  his  military  capacity,  was  in- 
creased by  colonel  Woodford's  refusal  to  acknowledge 
his  superiority  in  command.  This  gentleman,  after  his 
departure  from  Williamsburg  on  the  expedition  against 


*  The  committee  of  safety  was  composed  of  the  following  gentlemen : 
Edmund  Pendleton,  George  Mason,  hon.  John  Page,  Richard  Bl  and,  Thomas 
Ludwell  Lee,  Paul  Carrington,  Dudley  Digges,  William  Cabell,  Carter  Brax- 
ton, James  Mercer,  and  John  Tabb,  esquires. 

The  clause  of  the  ordinance  of  convention  which  authorised  this  commit- 
tee to  direct  all  military  movements,  is  the  following : 

"  And  whereas  it  may  be  necessary  for  the  public  security,  that  the  forces 
to  be  raised  by  virtue  of  this  ordinance,  should,  as  occasion  may  require,  be 
marched  to  different  parts  of  the  colony,  and  that  the  officers  should  be  sub- 
ject to  a  proper  controul,  Be  it  ordained  by  the  authority  aforesaid,  that  the 
officers  and  soldiers  under  such  command,  shall  in  all  things  not  otherwise 
particularly  provided  for  by  this  ordinance,  and  the  articles  established  for 
their  regulation,  be  under  the  controul,  and  subject  to  the  order  of  the  gene- 
ral committee  of  safety." 


168  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

Dunmore,  considered  himself  as  no  longer  under  Mr. 
Henry's  authority;  and  consequently,  addressed  all  his 
communications  to  the  convention  when  in  session,  and 
when  not  so,  to  the  committee  of  safety.  On  the  6th 
December  1775,  Mr.  Henry  sent  an  express  to  colonel 
Woodford,  with  the  following  letter: 

"  On  Virginia  service. 

"  To  William  Woodford,  esq.  colonel  of  the  second 

regiment  of  the  Virginia  forces. 

"  Head  Quarters,  Dec.  6th,  1775. 

"  Sir, 

"  Not  hearing  of  any  despatch  from  you  for  a  long 
time,  I  can  no  longer  forbear  sending  to  know  your 
situation,  and  what  has  occurred.  Every  one,  as  well 
as  myself,  is  vastly  anxious  to  hear  how  all  stands  with 
you.  In  case  you  think  any  thing  could  be  done  to  aid 
and  forward  the  enterprise  you  have  in  hand,  please  to 
write  it.  But  I  wish  to  know  your  situation  particu- 
larly, with  that  of  the  enemy,  that  the  whole  may  be 
laid  before  the  convention  now  here.  The  number 
and  designs  of  the  enemy,  as  you  have  collected  it, 
might  open  some  prospects  to  us,  that  might  enable  us 
to  form  some  diversion  in  your  favour.  The  bearer 
has  orders  to  lose  no  time,  and  return  with  all  possible 
haste.     I  am,  sir,  your  most  humble  servant, 

"  P.  Hexry,  jun. 
(t  P.  S.     Capt    Alexander's   company  is  not   yet 
come. 

"  Col.  Woodford." 

To  this  letter,  on  the  next  day,  he  received  the  fol- 
lowing answer  from  col.  Woodford. 


LIFE   OF   HENRY.  169 

Great  Bridge,  7th  Dec.  1775. 

«  Sir, 

"  I  received  yours  per  express;  in  answer  to 
which  must  inform  you,  that  understanding  you  were 
out  of  town,  I  have  not  written  you  before  last  Mon- 
day, by  the  return  of  the  honourable  the  Convention's 
express,  when  I  referred  you  to  my  letter  to  them,  for 
every  particular  respecting  mine  and  the  enemy's  situa- 
tion. I  wrote  them  again  yesterday  and  this  morning, 
which  no  doubt  they  will  communicate  to  you,  as  com- 
manding officer  of  the  troops  at  Williamsburg.  When 
joined,  I  shall  always  esteem  myself  immediately  under 
your  command,  and  will  obey  accordingly;  but  when 
sent  to  command  a  separate  and  distinct  body  of 
troops,  under  the  immediate  instructions  of  the  com- 
mittee of  safety — whenever  that  body  or  the  honour- 
able convention  is  sitting,  I  look  upon  it  as  my  in- 
dispensable duty  to  address  my  intelligence  to  them, 
as  the  supreme  power  in  this  colony.  If  I  judge 
wrong,  I  hope  that  honourable  body  will  set  me  right. 
I  would  wish  to  keep  up  the  greatest  harmony  between 
us,  for  the  good  of  the  cause  we  are  engaged  in;  but 
cannot  bear  to  be  supposed  to  have  neglected  my  duty, 
when  I  have  done  every  thing  I  conceived  to  be  so. 
The  enemy  are  strongly  fortified  on  the  other  side  the 
bridge,  and  a  great  number  of  negroes  and  tories  with 
them;  my  prisoners  disagree  as  to  the  numbers.  We 
are  situate  here  in  mud  and  mire,  exposed  to  eveiy 
hardship  that  can  be  conceived,  but  the  want  of  provi- 
sions, of  which  our  stock  is  but  small,  the  men  suffering 
for  shoes;  and  if  ever  soldiers  deserved  a  second  blanket 
in  any  service,  they  do  in  this;  our  stock  of  ammuni- 
tion much  reduced,  no  bullet  moulds  that  were  good  for 
any  thing  sent  to  run  up  our  lead,  till  those  sent  the 


170  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

other  day  by  Mr.  Page.  If  these  necessaries  and  better 
arms  had  been  furnished  in  time  for  this  detachment 
they  might  have  prevented  much  trouble  and  great 
expense  to  this  colony.  Most  of  those  arms  I  received 
the  other  day  from  Williamsburg,  are  rather  to  be  con- 
sidered as  lumber,  than  fit  to  be  put  in  men's  hands,  in 
the  face  of  an  enemy:  with  much  repair,  some  of  them 
will  do;  with  those,  and  what  I  have  taken  from  the 
enemy,  hope  to  be  better  armed  in  a  few  days.  I  have 
written  the  convention,  that  it  was  my  opinion,  the 
greatest  part  of  the  1st  regiment  ought  immediately  to 
march  to  the  scene  of  action  with  some  cannon,  and  a 
supply  of  ammunition,  and  every  other  necessary  for 
war  that  the  colony  can  muster,  that  a  stop  may  be  put 
to  the  enemy's  progress.  As  to  the  Carolina  troops  and 
cannon,  they  are  by  no  means  what  I  was  made  to 
expect:  60  of  them  are  here,  and  100  will  be  here  to- 
morrow; more,  it  is  said,  will  follow  in  a  few  days, 
under  col.  Howe;  badly  armed,  cannon  not  mounted, 
no  furniture  to  them.  How  long  these  people  will 
choose  to  stay,  is  impossible  for  me  to  say;  99  in  100 
of  these  lower  people,  rank  tories.  From  all  these 
informations,  if  you  can  make  a  diversion  in  my  favour, 
it  will  be  of  service  to  the  colony,  and  very  acceptable 
to  myself  and  soldiers;  whom  if  possible,  I  will  endea- 
vour to  keep  easy  under  their  hard  duty,  but  begin  to 
doubt  whether  it  will  be  the  case  long." 

In  two  days  after  the  receipt  of  this  letter,  came  the 
news  of  the  victory  of  the  Great  Bridge,  by  which  col. 
Woodford  at  once  threw  into  the  shade  the  military 
pretensions  of  all  the  other  state  officers;  a  circum- 
stance not  very  well  calculated  to  gild  the  pill  of  con- 
tumacy, which  he  had  just  presented  to  the  commander 
in  chief.     The  committee  of  safety  had  now  a  delicate 


LIFE  OP  HENRY.  171 

part  to  act  between  these  two  officers;  they  were 
extremely  anxious  to  avoid  the  decision  of  the  question 
which  had  arisen  between  them,  seeing  very  distinctly 
that  their  decision  could  not  but  disappoint  very  pain- 
fully, that  gentleman  who  was  their  favourite  officer. 
They  seem  to  have  been  apprehensive  that  col.  Wood- 
ford would  be  led,  by  that  decision,  to  resign  in  disgust; 
and  were  justly  alarmed  at  the  idea  of  losing  the  ser- 
vices of  so  valuable  an  officer,  especially  after  the 
distinction  which  he  had  recently  gained  at  the  Great 
Bridge.  Mr.  Henry,  however,  insisted  that  the  com- 
mittee or  convention  should  determine  the  question,  as 
being  the  only  way  to  settle  the  construction  of  his  com- 
mission. It  was  accordingly  taken  up,  and  decided  by 
the  following  order  of  the  committee. 

"  In  Committee — December  mucclxxv. 

"  Resolved,  unanimously,  that  colonel  Woodford, 
although  acting  upon  a  separate  and  detached  com- 
mand, ought  to  correspond  with  colonel  Henry,  and 
make  returns  to  him  at  proper  times  of  the  state  and 
condition  of  the  forces  under  his  command;  and  also 
that  he  is  subject  to  his  orders,  when  the  convention, 
or  the  committee  of  safety  is  not  sitting,  but  that  whilst 
either  of  those  bodies  are  sitting,  he  is  to  receive  his 
orders  from  one  of  them." 

The  address  which  was  thought  necessary  in  com- 
municating this  resolution  to  colonel  Woodford,  is  a 
proof  of  the  very  high  estimate  in  which  he  was  held  by 
the  committee;  and  the  same  evidence  furnishes  very  de- 
cisive proof  that  colonel  Henry  had  not  owed  his  military 
appointment  to  the  suffrage  of  those  members  of  the  com- 
mittee who  maintained  the  correspondence.  Thus,  on 
the  13th  of  December,  1775,  a  member  of  the  conven- 


172  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

lion  addressed  a  letter  to  colonel  Woodford,  which 
seems  to  have  been  a  preparative  for  the  resolution  of 
the  committee,  and  is  certainly  suited,  with  great, 
dexterity,  to  that  object;  the  writer,  after  some  intro- 
ductory observations,  says,  "  Whether  you  are  obliged 
to  make  your  returns  to  colonel  H — y,  and  to  send 
your  despatches  through  him  to  the  convention  and 
committee  of  safety,  and  also  from  those  bodies  through 
him  to  you,  must  depend  upon  the  ordinance  and  the 
commission  he  bears.  You  will  observe  his  commission 
is  strongly  worded,  beyond  Avhat  I  believe  was  the 
intention  of  the  person  who  drew  if*— but  the  ordinance 


*  The  committee  appointed  to  draw  up  and  report  the  forms  of  commis- 
sions, for  the  officers  of  the  troops  to  be  raised  by  order  of  the  convention, 
of  the  summer  of  1775,  were  Mr.  Banister,  Mr.  Lawson,  Mr.  Walkins  and 
Mr.  Holt ;  and  on  the  26th  of  August,  1775,  Mr.  Banister  from  this  commit- 
tee, reported  the  following : — 

"  Form  cf  a  commission  for  the  colonel  of  the  first  regiment,  and  com- 
mander of  the  regular  forces. 

"  The  committee  of  safety  for  the  colony  of  Virginia  to  Patrick  Henry,  esq. 
"  Whereas,  by  a  resolution  of  the  delegates  of  this  colony,  in  convention 
assembled,  it  was  determined  that  you,  the  said  Patrick  Henry,  esq.  should 
be  colonel  of  the  first  regiment  of  regulars,  and  commander  in  chief  of  all 
the  forces  to  be  raised  for  the  protection  and  defence  of  this  colony;  and  by 
an  ordinance  of  the  said  convention  it  is  provided,  that  the  committee  of 
safety  should  issue  all  military  commissions :  Now,  in  pursuance  of  the  said 
power  to  us  granted,  and  in  conformity  to  the  appointment  of  the  convention, 
we,  the  said  committee  of  safety,  do  constitute  and  commission  you,  the  said 
Patrick  Henry,  esq.  colonel  of  the  first  regiment  of  regulars,  and  commander 
in  chief  of  all  such  other  forces  as  may,  by  order  of  the  convention,  or  committee  of 
safety ,  be  directed  to  act  in  cojijunction  ivith  them ,-  and  with  the  said  forces,  or 
any  of  them,  you  are  hereby  empowered  to  resist  and  repel  all  hostile  inva- 
sions, and  quell  and  suppress  any  insurrections  which  may  be  made  or 
attempted  against  the  peace  and  safety  of  this  his  majesty's  colony  and 
dominion.  And  we  do  require  you  to  exert  your  utmost  efforts  for  the  pro- 
motion of  discipline  and  order,  among  the  officers  and  soldiers  under  your 
command,  agreeable  to  such  ordinances,  rules,  and  articles,  which  are  now, 
or  hereafter  may  be,  instituted  for  the  government  and  regulation  of  the 
army  ;  and  that  you  pay  due  obedience  to  all  orders  and  instructions,  which 
from  time  to  time,  you  may  receive  from  the  convention  or  committee  of 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  173 

I  think,  clearly  gives  the  convention,  and  committee  of 
safety  acting  under  their  authority,  the  absolute  direc- 
tion of  the  troops.  The  dispute  between  you  must  be 
occasioned  I  suppose,  (for  I  have  not  seen  your  letter  to 
the  colonel)  by  disregard  of  him  as  commander,  after 
the  adjournment  of  the  committee  of  safety,  and  before 
the  meeting  of  the  convention;  at  which  time,  I  am  apt 
to  think,  though  I  am  not  military  man  enough  to 
determine,  your  correspondence  should  have  been  with 
him  as  commanding  officer.  I  have  talked  with  colonel 
Henry  about  this  matter;  he  thinks  he  has  been  ill 
treated,  and  insists  the  officers  under  his  command 
shall  submit  to  his  orders.  I  recommended  it  to  him 
to  treat  the  business  with  caution  and  temper;  as  a  dif- 
ference at  this  critical  moment,  between  our  troops, 
would  be  attended  with  the  most  fatal  consequences; 
and  took  the  liberty  to  assure  him  you  would,  I  was 
certain,  submit  to  whatever  was  thought  just  and  rea- 
sonable. He  has  laid  the  letter  before  the  committee  of 
safety,  whose  sentiments  upon  the  subject,  I  expect  you 
must  have  received  before  this.  I  hope  it  will  not  come 
before  us,*  but  from  what  colonel  Henry  said,  he  inti- 
mated it  must,  as  it  could  be  no  otherwise  determined. 
My  sentiments  upon  that  delicate  point,  I  partly  com- 
municated upon  the  expected  junction  of  the  Carolina 

safety ;  to  hold,  exercise,  and  enjoy,  the  said  office  of  colonel  and  com- 
mander in  chief  of  the  forces,  and  to  perform  and  execute  the  power  and 
authority  aforesaid,  and  all  other  things  which  are  truly  and  of  right  inci- 
dental to  your  said  office,  during  the  pleasure  of  the  convention,  and  no 
longer.  And  ive  do  hereby  require  and  command  all  officers  and  soldiers,  and 
every  person  whatsoever,  in  any  -way  concerned,  to  be  obedient  and  assisting  to 
you  in  all  things,  touching  the  due  execution  of  this  commission,  according  to  the 
purport  or  intent  thereof, 

"  Given  under  our  hands  at        ,  this      day  of        ,  anno  Dom.  177  ." 

'  Tho  convention. 


174  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

troops  with  ours,  which  I  presume  you  have  received. 
By  your  letter  yesterday  to  the  president,  I  find  you 
agree  with  me.  I  very  cordially  congratulate  you  on 
the  success  at  the  Bridge  and  the  reduction  of  the  fort, 
which  will  give  our  troops  the  benefit  of  better  and 
more  wholesome  ground.  Your  letter  came  to  the 
convention  just  time  enough  to  read  it  before  we  broke 
up,  as  it  was  nearly  dark;  it  was  however  proposed, 
and  agreed  that  the  President  should  transmit  you  the 
approbation  of  your  conduct  in  treating  with  kindness 
and  humanity  the  unfortunate  prisoners;  and  that  your 
readiness  to  avoid  dispute  about  rank  with  colonel 
Plowe,  they  consider  as  a  further  mark  of  your  attach- 
ment to  the  service  of  your  country.  I  have  had  it  in 
contemplation  paying  you  a  visit,  but  have  not  been  able 
to  leave  the  convention,  as  many  of  our  members  are 
absent,  and  seem  to  be  in  continual  rotation,  some  going, 
others  returning.  We  shall  raise  many  more  battalions, 
and  as  soon  as  practicable,  arm  some  vessels.  A 
comr.  or  general,  I  suppose,  will  be  sent  us  by  the 
congress,  as  it  is  expected  our  troops  will  be  upon  con- 
tinental pay.  I  pray  God  to  protect  you,  and  prosper  all 
your  endeavours." 

But  the  letter  from  the  chairman  of  the  committee, 
which  enclosed  the  resolution,  is  a  master-piece  of 
address,  so  far  as  relates  to  the  feelings  of  col.  Wood- 
ford; though  certainly  not  well  judged  to  promote  the 
permanent  harmony  of  those  officers,  by  inspiring  sen- 
timents of  respect  and  subordination  for  the  superior. 
The  letter  bears  date  on  the  24th  December,  1775:  it 
is  written  in  a  strain  of  the  most  frank  and  conciliatory 
friendship — full  of  deserved  eulogy  on  col.  Woodford's 
conduct — and  very  far  from  complimentary  to  the 
colonel  of  the  first  regiment     In  relation  to  this  gen- 


LIFE  OP  HENRY.  1 15 

tleman,  (after  having  mentioned  the  resolution  of  raising 
other  regiments,)  he  says,  "  The  field  officers  to  each 
regiment  will  be  named  here,  and  recommended  to  con- 
gress; in  case  our  army  is  taken  into  continental  pay, 
they  will  send  commissions.  A  general  officer  will  be 
chosen  there,  I  doubt  not,  and  sent  us;  with  that  mat- 
ter, I  hope,  ive  shall  not  intermeddle,  lest  it  shoidd 
be  thought  propriety  requires  our  calling  or  rather 
recommending  our  present  first  officer  to  that  station. 
Believe  me  sir,  the  unlucky  step  of  calling  that  gentle- 
man from  our  councils,  where  he  was  useful,  into  the 
field,  in  an  important  station,  the  duties  of  which  he 
must  in  the  nature  of  things,  be  an  entire  stranger  to, 
has  given  me  many  an  anxious  and  uneasy  moment.  In 
consequence  of  this  mistaken  step,  which  can't  now  be 
retracted  or  remedied,  for  he  has  done  nothing  worthy 
of  degradation,  and  must  keep  his  rank,  we  must  be 
deprived  of  the  service  of  some  able  officers,  whose 
honour  and  former  ranks  will  not  suffer  them  to  act 
under  him  in  this  juncture,  when  we  so  much  need 
their  services;  however,  I  am  told,  that  Mercer,  Buck- 
ner,  Dangerfield,  and  Weedon,  will  serve,  and  are  all 
thought  of.  I  am  also  told,  that  Mr.  Thurston  and  Mr. 
Millikin  are  candidates  for  regiments:  the  latter,  I 
believe,  will  raise  and  have  a  German  one.  In  the 
course  of  these  reflections,  my  great  concern  is  on  your 
account.  The  pleasure  I  have  enjoyed  in  finding  your 
army  conducted  with  wisdom  and  success,  and  your 
conduct  meet  with  the  general  approbation  of  the  con- 
vention and  country,  makes  me  more  uneasy  at  a 
thought  that  the  country  should  be  deprived  of  your 
services,  or  you  made  uneasy  in  it,  by  any  untoward 
circumstances.  I  had  seen  your  letter  to  our  friend  Mr. 
Jones,  (now  a  member  of  the  committee  of  safety.)  and 


176  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

besides  that,  col.  Henry  has  laid  before  the  committee 
your  letter  to  him,  and  desired  our  opinion,  whether  he 
was  to  command  you  or  not.  We  never  determined 
this  till  Friday  evening;  a  copy  of  the  resolution  I 
enclose  you.  If  this  will  not  be  agreeable,  and  prevent 
future  disputes,  I  hope  some  happy  medium  will  be  sug- 
gested to  effect  the  purpose,  and  make  you  easy,  for  the 
colony  cannot  part  with  you,  while  troops  are  necessary 
to  be  continued." 

Mr.  Henry  had  too  much  sagacity  not  to  perceive  the 
light  in  which  he  was  viewed  by  the  committee  of 
safety,  and  too  much  sensibility  not  to  be  wounded  by 
the  discovery.  His  situation  was  indeed,  at  this  time, 
most  painfully  embarrassing.  The  rank  which  he  held 
was  full  of  the  promise  of  honour  and  distinction;  he 
was  the  first  officer  of  the  Virginia  forces;  the  cele- 
brity which  he  had  already  attained  among  his  country- 
men, not  only  by  his  political  resistance  to  the  measures 
of  the  British  parliament,  but  by  the  bold  and  daring 
military  enterprise  which  he  had  headed  the  preceding 
year,  in  the  affair  of  the  gunpowder,  led  his  coun- 
trymen to  expect,  that  the  appointment  which  he  now 
held  would  not  be  a  barren  one,  but  that  he  would 
mark  it  with  the  characters  of  his  extraordinary  genius, 
and  become  as  distinguished  in  the  field,  as  he  had  been 
in  the  senate.  He  knew  that  these  expectations  were 
entertained,  and  had  every  disposition  to  realize  them ; 
but  his  wishes  and  his  hopes  were  perpetually  over-ruled 
by  the  committee  of  safety,  who  commanded  over  him, 
and  who  gratuitously  distrusting  his  capacity  for  war, 
would  give  him  no  opportunity  of  making  trial  of  it. 
Yet  Mr.  Henry  untried,  has  been  most  unjustly  slighted 
as  a  soldier,  and  spoken  of  as  a  mere  military  cipher! 
If  I  have  not  been  misinformed,  some  of  those  who 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  177 

composed  this  .very  committee,  did  in  after  times,  fre- 
quently allude  to  this  period  of  his  life,  to  prove  the 
practical  inutility  of  his  character,  and  have  applied  to 
him  the  saying,  which  Wilkes  applied  to  lord  Chatham, 
that  "  all  his  power  and  efficacy  was  seated  in  his 
tongue."*  What  figure  he  might  have  made  in  war, 
had  the  opportunity  been  allowed  him,  can  now  be  only 
matter  of  speculation.  His  personal  bravery,  so  far  as 
I  have  heard,  has  never  been  called  in  question;  or  if 
it  has,  it  has  been  without  evidence;  and  neither  his 
ardour  in  the  public  cause,  or  his  strong  natural  sense, 
can  with  any  colour  of  justice  be  disputed.  If  we 
superadd  to  these  qualities,  that  presence  of  mind,  that 
promptitude,  boldness,  and  novelty  of  view — that  dex- 
terous address,  and  fertility  of  expedient,  for  which  he 
was  remarkable — I  can  see  no  reason  to  doubt,  that  he 
would  have  justified  the  highest  expectations  of  his 
admirers,  had  he  been  permitted  to  command  the  expe- 
dition which  he  courted.  As  to  his  want  of  experience, 
the  alleged  ground  for  keeping  him  so  ignominiously 
eonfined  to  head  quarters,  he  possessed  pretty  nearly  as 
much  experience  as  colonel  Washington  had,  when  he 
covered  the  retreat  of  Braddock's  routed  forces;  as 
much  too,  as  those  young  generals  of  ours,  who  have 
recently  covered  themselves  with  so  much  glory  on  our 
northern  frontier:  nor  would  it  seem  to  comport  with 
that  respect  which  the  committee  owed  to  the  conven- 
tion, from  whom  both  colonel  Henry  and  themselves  had 
received  their  respective  appointments,  to  arrogate  the 
power  of  reversing  the  decree  of  the  convention,  and 
practically  degrading  the  officer  of  their  first  choice. 


-homines  inevtissimi,  quorum  omiris  vis,  vi)  tusque  in  lingua  sita  est. 

Sallust.  Oratio  sec.  De  Rep.  Ord. 

Z 


178  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

It  is  certain  that  the  committee  were  severely  spoken 
of  at  the  day,  and  that  the  people,  as  well  as  the  soldiery, 
did  not  hesitate  openly  to  impute  their  conduct  towards 
Mr.  Henry,  to  personal  envy. 

Other  humiliations  yet  awaited  him.  Shortly  after  the 
affair  of  the  Great  Bridge,  colonel  Howe  of  North 
Carolina,  at  the  head  of  five  or  six  hundred  men  of 
that  state,  joined  colonel  Woodford;  and  taking  the  com- 
mand of  the  whole,  with  the  consent  of  the  latter  gen- 
tleman, who  yielded  to  the  seniority  of  his  commission, 
marched  with  their  united  forces  into  Norfolk,  which 
had  been  evacuated  by  the  British.  From  this  post, 
colonel  Howe  continually  addressed  his  communica- 
tions to  the  committee  of  safety,  or  to  the  convention ; 
and  colonel  Henry,  after  having  seen  his  lawful  rights 
and  honours  transferred  in  the  first  instance,  to  an 
inferior  officer  of  his  own,  had  now  the  mortification 
of  seeing  himself  completely  superseded,  and  almost 
annihilated,  by  an  officer  from  another  state  of  only 
equal  rank.  * 

But  even  this  was  not  all:  six  additional  regiments 
had  been  raised  by  the  convention,  and  congress  had 
been  solicited  to  take  the  Virginia  troops  on  continental 
establishment.  They  resolved  to  take  the  six  new  regi- 
ments, passing  by  the  two  first;  a  discrimination  which 
conveys  so  palpable  a  reflection  on  the  two  first  regi- 
ments, that  it  is  difficult  to  account  for  it,  except  by 
the  secret  influence  of  that  unfriendly  star,  which  had 
hitherto  controuled  and  obscured  Mr.  Henry's  military 
destinies.  The  measure  was  so  exactly  adjusted  to  the 
wish  expressed  by  colonel  Woodford's  correspondent, 
that  congress  would  not  devolve  the  chief  command  of 
the  Virginia  forces  on  colonel  Henry,  that  it  is  difficult 
to  avoid  the  suspicion,  that  die  suggestion  came  from 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  179 

the  same  quarter.  The  convention  however,  now 
interfered  in  behalf  of  their  favourite;  and  remonstrat- 
ed against  this  degradation  of  the  officers  of  their  first 
choice;  earnestly  recommending  it  to  congress,  if  they 
adhered  to  their  resolution  of  taking  into  continental 
pay  no  more  than  six  regiments,  to  suffer  the  two  first 
to  stand  first  in  the  arrangement.  This  course  was 
accordingly  adopted;  but  at  the  same  time,  commissions 
of  brigadier  general,  were  forwarded  by  congress  to 
colonel  Howe  and  colonel  Andrew  Lewis. 

The  reader,  if  he  knows  any  thing  of  the  scrupulous 
and  even  fastidious  delicacy  with  which  military  officers 
watch  the  most  distant  reflection  upon  their  com- 
petency, will  not  be  surprised  that  Mr.  Henry  refused 
the  continental  commission  of  colonel,*  which  was  now 


*  The  following  is  an  exact  copy  of  the  commission  sent  from  the  general 
congress  to  the  committee  of  safety,  appointing  colonel  Henry  to  the  com- 
mand of  the  first  regiment,  or  battalion,  in  this  colony,  taken  upon  the  con- 
tinental establishment,  agreeable  to  the  requisition  of  the  last  convention: 

"  In  Congress. 

'"  The  delegates  of  the  United  Colonies  of  New  Hampshire,  Massachusetts 
Bay,  Rhode  Island,  Connecticut,  New  York,  New  Jersey,  Pennsylvania, 
the  Counties  of  New  Castle,  Kent,  and  Sussex  on  Delaware,  Maryland, 
Virginia,  North  Carolina,  South  Carolina,  and  Georgia,  to  Patrick  Henry, 
esq. 

u  We,  reposing  especial  trust  and  confidence  in  your  patriotism,  valour, 
conduct,  and  fidelity,  do  by  these  presents,  constitute  and  appoint  you  to  be 
Colonel  of  the  first  battalion  of  Virginia  forces,  in  the  army  of  the  United 
Colonies,  raised  for  the  defence  of  American  liberty,  and  for  repelling  every 
hostile  invasion  thereof.  You  are  therefore,  carefully  and  diligently  to  dis- 
charge the  duty  of  colonel,  by  doing  and  performing  all  manner  of  things 
thereunto  belonging.  And  we  do  strictly  charge  and  require  all  officers  and 
soldiers  under  your  command,  to  be  obedient  to  your  orders  as  colonel.  And 
you  are  to  observe  and  follow  such  orders  and  directions,  from  time  to  time, 
as  you  shall  receive  from  this  or  a  future  congress  of  the  United  Colonies,  or 
committee  of  congress,  for  that  purpose  appointed,  or  commander  in  chief 
for  the  time  being  of  the  army  of  the  United  Colonies,  or  any  other  superior 


180  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

offered  to  him,  and  immediately  resigned  that  which  he 
held  from  the  state.  His  resignation  produced  a  com- 
motion in  the  camp,  which  wore  at  first  an  alarming 
aspect;  and  would  probably  have  had  an  extremely  un- 
propitious  effect  on  the  military  efforts  of  the  state,  had  it 
not  been  instantaneously  quelled  by  his  own  patriotic 
exertions.  The  following  is  the  notice  of  this  trans- 
action from  Purdie's  paper  of  March  1st,  1776: 

"  Yesterday  morning,  the  troops  in  this  city  being 
informed  that  Patrick  Henry,  esquire,  commander  in 
chief  of  the  Virginia  forces,  was  about  to  leave  them, 
the  whole  went  into  deep  mourning,  and  being  under 
arms,  waited  on  him  at  his  lodgings,  when  they  address- 
ed him  in  the  following  manner: 

"  To  Patrick  Henry,  jun.  esquire. 

"  Deeply  impressed  with  a  grateful  sense  of  the  obli- 
gations we  lie  under  to  you,  for  the  polite,  humane,  and 
tender  treatment  manifested  to  us  throughout  the  whole 
of  your  conduct,  while  we  had  the  honour  of  being 
under  your  command,  permit  us  to  offer  you  our  sin- 
cere thanks,  as  the  only  tribute  we  have  in  our  power 
to  pay  to  your  real  merits.  Notwithstanding  your  with- 
drawing yourself  from  the  service,  fills  us  with  the  most 
poignant  sorrow,  as  it  at  once  deprives  us  of  our  father 
and  general;  yet,  as  gentlemen,  we  are  compelled  to  ap- 
plaud your  spirited  resentment  to  tlie  most  glaring  in- 
dignity.    May  your  merit  shine  as  conspicuous  to  the 

officer,  according  to  the  rules  and  discipline  of  war,  in  pursuance  of  the  trust 
reposed  in  you.  This  commission  to  continue  in  force  until  revoked  by  this 
or  a  future  congress.    By  order  of  the  congress, 

"  John  Hancock,  President." 
"  Attest, 

"  Charles  Thomson,  Secretary. 

«  Philadelphia,  Feb.  13th,  1776." 


LIFE    OF    HENRY.  181 

world  in  general,  as  it  hath  done  to  us,  and  may  Heaven 
shower  its  choicest  blessings  upon  you!" 

"  To  which  he  returned  the  following  answer: 

"  Gentlemen, 

"  I  am  exceedingly  obliged  to  you  for  your  appro- 
bation of  my  conduct.  Your  address  does  me  the 
highest  honour.  This  kind  testimony  of  your  regard  to 
me,  would  have  been  an  ample  reward  for  services 
much  greater  than  those  /  have  had  the  poiver  to  per- 
form. I  return  you,  and  each  of  you,  gentlemen,  my 
best  acknowledgments  for  the  spirit,  alacrity,  and  zeal, 
you  have  constantly  shown  in  your  several  stations.  I 
am  unhappy  to  part  with  you.  I  leave  the  service,  but 
I  leave  my  heart  with  you.  May  God  bless  you,  and  give 
you  success  and  safety,  and  make  you  the  glorious  in- 
strument of  saving  our  country/' 

"After  the  officers  had  received  colonel  Henry's 
kind  answer  to  their  address,  they  insisted  upon  his 
dining  with  them,  at  the  Raleigh  tavern,  before  his  de- 
parture; and  after  dinner  a  number  of  them  proposed 
escorting  him  out  of  town,  but  were  prevented  in  their 
resolution  by  some  uneasiness  getting  among  the  sol- 
diery, who  assembled  in  a  tumultuous  manner,  and  de- 
manded their  discharge,  declaring  their  unwillingness 
to  serve  under  any  other  commander;  upon  which  colo- 
nel Henry  found  it  necessary  to  stay  a  night  longer  in 
town;  which  he  spent  in  visiting  the  several  barracks, 
and  used  every  argument  in  his  power  with  the  soldiery, 
to  lay  aside  their  imprudent  resolution,  and  to  continue 
in  the  service,  which  he  had  quitted  from  motives  in 
which  his  honour  alone  teas  concerned;  and  that, 
although  he  was  prevented  from  serving  his  country  in 
a  military  capacity,  yet  his  utmost  abilities  should  be 


182  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

exerted  for  the  real  interest  of  the  united  colonies,  in 
support  of  the  glorious  cause  in  which  they  have  en- 
gaged. This,  accompanied  with  the  extraordinary  ex- 
ertions of  colonel  Christian,  and  other  officers  present, 
happily  produced  the  desired  effect;  the  soldiers  reluct- 
antly acquiescing;  and  we  have  now  the  pleasure  to 
assure  the  public,  that  those  brave  fellows  are  now  pretty 
well  reconciled,  and  will  spend  the  last  drop  of  their 
blood  in  their  country's  defence." 

This  is  the  man  who  has  been  sometimes  branded  as 
a  turbulent,  seditious,  factious  demagogue!  Had  he 
been  of  this  character,  what  an  occasion  was  here  to 
have  provoked  it  to  action!  This  love  for  the  man  and 
the  officer,  and  this  resentment  of  the  indignities  to 
which  he  had  been  subjected,  was  not  confined  to  the 
camp  at  Williamsburg;  they  pervaded  the  whole  army, 
and  were  felt  and  expressed  by  the  following  address, 
.signed  by  upwards  of  ninety  officers  at  Kemp's  landing, 
and  Suffolk,  (in  colonel  Woodford's  camp)  as  well  as  at 
Williamsburg:  and  printed  by  their  desire  in  Purdie's 
paper  of  the  22d  March,  1 775. 

"  Sir, 

"  Deeply  concerned  for  the  good  of  our  country,  we  sin- 
cerely lament  the  unhappy  necessity  of  your  resignation 
and  with  all  the  warmth  of  affection,  assure  you,  that, 
whatever  may  have  given  rise  to  the  indignity  lately  offer- 
ed to  you,  tee  join  with  the  general  voice  of  the  people,  and 
think  it  our  duty  to  make  this  public  declaration  of  our 
high  respect  for  your  distinguished  merit.  To  your 
vigilance  and  judgment  as  a  senator,  this  united  conti- 
nent bears  ample  testimony:  while  she  prosecutes  her 
steady  opposition  to  those  destructive  ministerial  mea- 
sures which  your  eloquence  first  pointed  out  and  taught 


LIFE  OF  HENRY. 


183 


to  resent,  and  your  resolution  led  forward  to  resist    To 
your  extensive  popularity,  the  service  also  is  greatly 
indebted,  for  the  expedition  with  which  the  troops  were 
raised;   and,  while  they  were  continued  under  your 
command,  the  firmness,  candour,  and  politeness,  which 
formed  the  complexion  of  your  conduct  towards  them, 
obtained  the  signal  approbation  of  the  wise  and  vir- 
tuous, and  will  leave  upon  our  minds  the  most  grateful 
impression.     Although  retired  from  the  immediate  con- 
cerns of  war,  we  solicit  the  continuance  of  your  kindly 
attention.     We  know  your  attachment  to  the  best  of 
causes;  we  have  the  fullest  confidence  in  your  abilities, 
and  in  the  rectitude  of  your  views;  and  however  wUUng 
the  envious  may  be  to  undermine  an  established  imputa- 
tion, we  trust  the  day  will  come,  when  justice  shall 
prevail,   and  thereby  secure  you  an  honourable  and 
happy  return  to  the  glorious  employment  of  conducting 
our  councils,  and  hazarding  your  life  in  the  defence  of 
your  country. 

"  With  the  most  grateful  sentiments  of  regard  and 
esteem,  we  are,  sir,  very  respectfully,  your  most  oblig- 
ed, and  obedient  humble  servants/' 

If  any  doubt  can  be  entertained  as  to  the  body  to 
which  this  imputation  of  envy  pointed,  it  will  be  re- 
moved by  the  following  defence  of  the  committee  of 
safety,  extracted  from  the  supplement  to  Purdie's  paper 
of  the  15th  of  March,  1776. 

"  Mr.  Purdie, 

"  I  am  informed  a  report  is  prevailing  through  the 
colony,  that  the  committee  of  safety  were  the  cause  of 
colonel  Henry's  resigning  the  command  of  his  bat- 
talion; which  it  is  supposed  hath  received  confirmation 


184  SKETCHES    OF   THE 

from  the  address  of  the  officers  to  that  gentleman,  in 
which  they  speak  of  a  glaring  indignity  having  been 
offered  him,  if  it  was  not  wholly  derived  from  that 
source.  That  the  good  people  of  the  country  may  be 
truly  informed  in  this  matter,  the  following  state  of 
facts  is  submitted  without  comment,  to  the  impartial 
judgment  of  the  public. 

"  As  soon  as  the  last  convention  had  voted  the  rais- 
ing seven  new  battalions  of  troops,  besides  augmenting 
the  old  ones,  the  committee  of  safety  informed  our 
delegates  to  congress  of  that  vote,  desiring  they  would 
use  their  best  endeavours  to  have  the  whole  supported 
at  continental  expense;  in  answer  to  which,  a  letter  was 
received  from  the  delegates,  dated  the  30th  of  Decem- 
ber, of  which  the  following  is  an  extract:  '  The  resolu- 
tions of  congress  for  taking  our  six  additional  (they 
would  not  agree  to  take  our  other  two)  battalions,  into 
continental  pay,  and  for  permitting  an  exportation  for 
supplying  our  countrymen  with  salt,  are  enclosed/  It 
was  supposed  from  hence,  an  intention  prevailed  in 
congress  to  pass  by  the  two  old  battalions,  and  take  six 
of  the  new  ones  into  continental  pay;  which,  as  it  was 
said  those  officers  would  take  precedency  of  provincial 
ones  of  equal  rank,  was  generally  thought  wrong,  since 
it  would  degrade  the  officers  of  the  two  first  battalions; 
and,  to  avoid  this,  the  convention  came  to  a  resolution 
the  10th  of  January,  of  which  the  following  is  part: 
'  Should  the  congress  adhere  to  their  resolution  of  tak- 
ing into  continental  pay  no  more  than  six  battalions,  let 
it  be  earnestly  recommended  to  them  to  suffer  our  two 
present  battalions  (to  be  completed  as  before  mentioned) 
to  stand  first  in  the  arrangement;  since  otherwise,  the 
officers  first  appointed  by  this  convention,  most  of  whom 
have  already  gone  through  a  laborious  and  painful  ser- 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  185 

vice,  will  be  degraded  in  their  ranks,  and  there  is  too 
much  reason  to  apprehend,  that  great  confusion  will 
ensue.' 

"  The  worthy  gentleman  (not  a  member  of  the  com- 
mittee of  safety)  who  proposed  this  resolution,  informed 
the  convention  he  had  consulted  some  of  the  officers  of 
the  first  regiment,  who  wished  to  have  their  rank  pre- 
served, though  it  was  foreseen  the  pay  would  be  re- 
duced. 

"  The  committee  of  safety,  in  a  letter  to  the  dele- 
gates dated  the  25th  of  January,  enclosing  this  resolu- 
tion, thus  write:  i  You  have  a  list  of  the  field  officers  as 
they  stand  recommended,  and  we  doubt  not  receiving 
the  commissions  in  the  like  order,  with  blanks  for  the 
proper  number  of  captains  and  subalterns.  If,  how- 
ever, the  resolution  of  congress  should  be  unalterably 
fixed  to  allow  us  but  six  battalions,  you  will  please  to 
attend  to  that  part  of  the  resolve  which  recommends 
their  being  the  first  six,  as  a  point  of  great  consequence 
to  our  harmony,  in  which  may  be  involved  the  good  of 
the  common  cause/  The  committee  of  safety  after- 
wards received  the  commissions  wholly  filled  up  for 
the  field  officers  of  six  battalions,  in  the  rank  they  stood 
recommended  by  the  convention,  beginning  with  col 
Henry,  and  ending  with  col.  Buckner  of  the  6th  bat- 
talion, with  directions  to  deliver  them.  Colonel  Henry 
was  accordingly  offered  his  commission,  which  he  declin- 
ed accepting,  and  retired  without  assigning  any  rea- 
sons. 

"  As  to  the  general  officers,  the  convention  left  them 
entirely  to  the  choice  of  the  congress,  without  recom  • 
mendation ;  nor  did  the  committee  of  safety  at  all  in- 
termeddle in  that  choice. 

"A  Friend  to  Truth/'1 
a  a 


186  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

Immediately  following  this  defence  of  the  committee, 
in  the  same  paper,  are  the  two  following  articles: 

"Mr.Purdie, 

"  The  address  of  the  officers  to  col.  Henry,  and  the 
col/s  reply,  has  led  some  of  our  enemies  to  hope  that  there 
would  be  great  discontent  in  the  army,  by  which  our 
military  operations  would  be  retarded,  and  that  there 
would  be  a  considerable  murmuring  against  the  con- 
gress; but  they  are  much  mistaken.  It  is  true  the 
soldiers  and  officers  were  very  unhappy  at  parting  with 
so  amiable  a  commander  as  colonel  Henry,  and  might 
be  a  little  imprudent  in  some  expressions  on  the  occa- 
sion; but  there  is  not  a  man  of  them  who  is  not  so 
warmly  attached  to  the  glorious  cause  he  is  engaged  in, 
as  to  serve  with  alacrity  under  any  commander,  rather 
than  it  should  suffer.  And  colonel  Henry  himself,  is  a 
gentleman  of  so  much  honour,  and  so  true  a  patriot, 
that  he  will  never  countenance  a  murmur  against  the 
congress;  nay  so  far  from  it,  that  it  is  highly  probable 
he  will  soon  be  found  in  that  august  assembly,  urging 
with  his  powerful  eloquence,  the  necessity  of  prosecut- 
ing the  war  with  redoubled  vigour.  I  am  a  sincere 
friend  to  the  congress  and  to  colonel  Henry." 

"Mr.  Purdie, 

"  Envy  will  merit,  as  its  shade  pursue ; 

But,  like  the  shadow,  proves  the  substance  true." 

Pope. 

"  I  was  not  surprised  to  see,  in  your  last  week's 
gazette,  the  resignation  of  Patrick  Heniy,  esquire, 
late  commander  in  chief  of  all  the  Virginia  forces,  and 
colonel  of  the  first  regiment.  From  that  gentleman's 
amiable  disposition,  his  invariable  perseverance  in  the 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  187 

cause  of  liberty,  we  apprehend  that  envy  strove  to  bury 
in  obscurity  his  martial  talents.  Fettered  and  confined, 
with  only  an  empty  title,  the  mere  echo  of  authority,  his 
superior'  abilities  lay  inactive,  nor  could  be  exerted  for 
his  honour,  or  his  country's  good. 

«  Virginia  may  truly  boast,  that  in  him  she  finds  the 
able  statesman,  the  soldier's  father,  the  best  of  citizens, 
and  liberty's  dear  friend.  Clad  with  innocence,  as  in  a 
coat  of  mail,  he  is  proof  against  every  serpentile  whisper. 
The  officers  and  soldiers,  who  know  him,  are  rivetted 
to  his  bosom;  when  he  speaks,  all  is  silence;  when  he 
orders,  they  cheerfully  obey;  and  in  the  field,  under 
so  sensible,  so  prudent  an  officer,  though  hosts  oppose 
them,  with  shouts  they  meet  their  armed  foe,  the  sure 
presages  of  victory  and  success. 

"  Let  us,  my  countrymen,  with  grateful  hearts,  re- 
member that  he  carried  off  the  standard  of  liberty,  and 
defeated  Grenville  in  his  favourite  stamp  act. 

"  While  many  dreaded,  till  with  pleasing  eye, 
Saw  tyranny  before  brave  Henry  fly. 

"  I  am,  Mr.  Purdie,  your  friend,  and  a  well-wisher 
to  Virginia. 

"  An  Honest  Farmer." 

It  is  very  clear  from  the  last  piece,  as  well  as  from 
the  address  of  the  ninety  officers,  which  has  been 
already  given,  and  which  was  published  by  their  desire 
in  a  paper  subsequent  to  that  which  contains  the  defence 
of  the  committee,  that  that  defence  had  been  by  no 
means  satisfactory;  and  that  either  the  committee  as  a 
body,  or  what  is  more  probable,  some  individual  or  in- 
dividuals of  it,  were  still  believed  to  have  had  a  secret 
hand  in  planning  and  directing  the  series  of  indignities 


188  .SKETCHES  OF  THE 

which  had  driven  Mr.  Henry  from  a  military  life.  It 
would  seem  that  the  truly  respectable  and  venerable 
chairman  of  that  committee,  came  in  at  the  time,  for 
his  full  proportion  of  this  censure,  and  that  he  smarted 
severely  under  it:  this  I  infer,  from  a  letter  of  his  to 
colonel  Woodford  some  time  afterwards,  in  answer  to 
one  by  which  that  gentleman  had  consulted  him  as  to 
the  propriety  of  his  resigning  his  commission.  After 
having  dissuaded  him  from  this  step  by  other  topics,  he 
proceeds  thus:  "  I  am  apprehensive  that  your  resigna- 
tion will  be  handled  to  your  disadvantage,  from  a  cer- 
tain quarter,  wliere  all  reputations  are  sacrificed,  for 
tJie  sake  of  one;  what  does  it  signify,  that  lie  resigned 
without  any  such  cause,  or  assigning  any  reason  at  all; 
it  is  not  ■without  example,  that  others  should  be  censured 
for  ivhat  lie  is  applauded  for"  This  acrimony,  so  un- 
usual from  a  man  ol  Mr.  Pendleton's  benevolence  and 
courtesy,  could  have  been  wrung  from  him  only  by  the 
bitterest  provocations;  and  renders  it  highly  probable, 
that  the  numerous  and  enthusiastic  admirers  of  Mr. 
Henry,  had  implicated  this  gentleman  deeply  in  the 
indignities  which  had  recently  been  offered  to  their 
favourite. 

The  necessity  of  placing  this  incident  of  Mr.  Henry's 
life  in  its  true  light,  upon  the  evidence  in  my  posses- 
sion, has  imposed  upon  me  a  very  painful  duty,  in  re- 
gard to  Mr.  Pendleton.  With  the  justice  or  injustice 
of  the  construction  placed  upon  his  conduct  in  relation 
to  Mr.  Henry,  I  have  nothing  to  do.  Even  if  just,  the 
infirmity  of  human  nature  may  be  easily  excused  in 
feeling  some  uneasiness,  at  the  eclipsing  brightness  with 
which  Mr.  Henry  had  rushed  like  a  comet,  to  the  head 
of  affairs  in  Virginia.  It  demands,  however,  no  uncom- 
mon measure  of  charity,  to  believe  that  what  was  im- 


LIFE    OF    HENRY.  189 

puted  to  envy  at  the  time,  proceeded,  so  far  as  Mr.  Pen- 
dleton was  concerned,  from  a  single  eye  to  the  public 
good,  and  a  sincere  belief  on  his  part,  (an  opinion  in 
which  he  was  by  no  means  singular,)  that  Mr.  Henry's 
inexperience  in  military  affairs,  made  it  unsafe  to  com- 
mit to  his  management  the  infancy  of  our  war.  The 
people  required  to  be  animated  by  success  in  the  on- 
set; and  it  was  therefore  very  natural  in  the  commit- 
tee of  safety,  on  whom  the  responsibility  for  the  ma- 
nagement of  the  war  devolved,  to  select  for  the  first 
enterprises,  the  most  experienced  commander.  Mr. 
Pendleton  was  too  virtuous  a  man,  and  too  faithful  a 
patriot,  to  have  yielded  consciously  to  any  other  motive 
of  action  than  the  public  good.  His  country  has  fixed 
its  seal  upon  his  exalted  character,  and  the  writer  of 
these  sketches  is  much  more  disposed  to  brighten  than 
to  efface  the  impression. 

The  motives  of  Mr.  Henry's  resignation  of  his  com- 
mission,  which  have  been  stated,  are  very  easily  and 
clearly  deducible  from  the  papers  of  the  day,  and  were 
expressly  avowed  by  him  to  his  confidential  friend  and 
brother-in-law,  col.  Meredith  *  To  other  friends  how- 
ever, he  stated  that  he  was  the  more  reconciled  to  the 
necessity  which  had  compelled  him  to  resign,  because  he 
believed  that  he  could  perhaps,  serve  the  cause  of  his 
country,  more  effectually  in  the  public  councils  than  in 
the  field. f 

*  These  are  colonel  Meredith's  words: — "  P.  H.  in  a  communication  to 
colonel  M.  stated  his  motives  for  resigning  his  commission  as  colonel.  He 
conceived  himself  neglected  by  younger  officers  having  been  put  above  him, 
and  preferred  to  him;  particularly  in  the  affair  of  the  Great  Bridge,  where  he 
wished  to  have  commanded;  but  colonel  Woodford  received  that  appoint- 
ment. He  disliked  his  being  kept  in  and  about  Williamsburg,  and  not  ap- 
pointed to  some  important  post  or  expedition.  He  was  thus  induced  to 
think  he  was  neglected  by  those  who  had  the  power  of  appointment.  He 
therefore  resigned," 

t  Judge  Tyler,  and  captain  George  Dabney. 


190  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

Immediately  upon  his  resignation,  he  was  elected  a 
delegate  to  the  convention  for  the  county  of  Hanover. 
The  session  of  that  body,  which  was  now  coming  on, 
was  pregnant  with  importance.  Dunmore  had  abdi- 
cated the  chair  of  government,  and  the  royal  authority 
in  the  colony  was  seen  and  felt  no  longer,  but  in  acts 
of  hostility.  The  king  had  declared,  from  his  throne, 
that  the  colonists  must  be  reduced  by  force,  to  submit 
to  the  British  claim  of  taxation ;  and  the  colonists,  on 
their  part,  had  vowed  that  they  never  would  submit  to 
this  prostration  of  their  rights;  but  on  the  contrary,  that 
they  would  hand  down  to  their  children,  the  birth-right 
of  liberty  which  they  had  enjoyed,  or  perish  in  the 
attempt.  On  this  quarrel,  arms  had  been  taken  up  on 
both  sides,  and  the  appeal  had  been  made  to  the  God  of 
battles.  The  war  had  assumed  a  regular  and  settled 
form;  blood  had  been  profusely  shed  in  various 
parts  of  the  continent,  and  reconciliation  had  become 
hopeless. 

The  people  being  thus  abandoned  by  their  king,  put 
out  of  his  protection,  declared  in  a  state  of  open  rebel- 
lion, and  treated  as  enemies,  the  social  compact  which 
had  united  the  monarch  with  his  subjects,  was  at  an 
end;  the  colonial  constitution,  which  could  be  set  and 
kept  in  motion  only  by  the  presence  and  agency  of  the 
king  or  his  representative,  was  of  course  dissolved;  and 
all  the  rights  and  powers  of  government,  reverted  of 
necessity,  to  their  source,  the  people.  These  causes 
produced  the  convention.  It  was  the  organ  by  which 
the  people  chose  to  exercise  the  fundamental  rights 
thus  thrown  back  upon  them,  by  the  dissolution  of  the 
regal  government.  It  was  the  substitute  for  the  whole 
government  which  had  been  withdrawn,  legislative, 
executive,  and  judiciary.     It  represented  the  whole 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  191 

political  power  of  the  people;  and  had  been  expressly 
elected  to  take  care  of  the  republic.  The  means  of  ac- 
complishing this  object,  were  left  to  themselves,  without 
limitation  or  restriction  on  the  part  of  the  people. 
Hitherto,  while  any  hope  of  a  restoration  of  the  original 
government  on  just  terms,  could  be  entertained,  the 
convention  had  been  satisfied  with  temporary  expedi- 
ents; the  first  convention  however,  had  exercised  the 
power  of  the  people  in  their  highest  capacity,  by  adopt- 
ing a  species  of  constitution  and  organizing  a  govern- 
ment under  it;  thus  they  erected  an  executive,  under 
the  name  of  a  committee  of  safety,  which  the  people 
recognised  as  flowing  directly  from  themselves.  Before 
the  meeting  of  the  convention  of  1776  however,  it  was 
seen  and  well  understood  on  every  hand,  that  the  con- 
test could  not  be  maintained  by  the  people,  without  the 
aid  of  regular  government;  and  that  the  political  malady 
of  which  they  complained,  could  be  extirpated  in  no 
other  way  than  by  applying  the  knife  to  the  root.  The 
newspapers  of  the  preceding  year,  contain  frequent 
suggestions  of  this  kind;  the  impression  had  now  be- 
come universal;  and  the  papers  present  specimens  of 
explicit  instructions  from  the  people  to  their  delegates 
to  this  effect*     Thus  instructed  in  the  sentiments  of 


*  The  following  are  the  instructions  from  the  free-holders  of  James  city 
to  their  delegates  : — 

"  To  Robert  C  Nicholas  and  William  Norvell,  esquires. 

"  Gentlemen, 

"  In  vain  do  we  congratulate  ourselves  on  the  impotency  of  the  minister 
to  divide  us,  if  our  union  amounts  to  nothing  more  than  an  union  in  one  com- 
mon lethargy.  War  hath  been  brought  into  our  houses,  heightened  by 
terrors  and  cruelties  which  the  justest  cause  wants  even  palliatives  for ;  but 
faint  advances  towards  peace,  insidiously  urged,  have  caught  the  ear  of  the 
credulous,  and  groundless  hopes  of  accommodation  deluded  the  timid,  so 
that  the  free  military  system  remains  untouched  in  most  essential  points.  As  if 


192  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

their  constituents,  and  representing  the  people  in  their 
highest  sovereign  capacity,  the  convention  met  on  the 
6th  of  May,  1776,  in  the  old  capitol  in  the  city  of  Wil- 
liamsburg. Mr.  Pendleton  having  been  elected  presi- 
dent, after  having  thanked  the  house  for  the  honour 
done  him,  addressed  them  with  great  solemnity,  in  the 
following  terms: — "  We  are  now  met  in  general  conven- 
tion, according  to  the  ordinance  for  our  election,  at  a 
time  truly  critical,  when  subjects  of  the  most  im- 
portant and  interesting  nature  require  our  serious  atten- 
tion. 

"  The  administration  of  justice,  and  almost  all  the 
powers  of  government,  have  now  been  suspended  for 
near  two  years.     It  will  become  us  to  reflect  whether 


our  inexperience,  poverty  in  warlike  stores,  and  the  infancy  of  our  navy,  were 
of  trifling  moment,  we  have  ventured  to  neglect  resources  in  such  difficul. 
ties,  which  Heaven  hath  placed  within  our  attainment. 

"  Alliances  reay  be  formed  at  an  easy  price,  capable  of  supplying  these 
disadvantages,  but  an  independent  state  disdains  to  humble  herself  to  an 
equality  in  treaty  with  another,  who  cannot  call  her  politics  her  own  ; 
or,  to  be  explicit,  she  cannot  enter  into  a  negotiation  with  those  who 
denominate  themselves  rebels,  by  resistance,  and  confession  of  a  depen- 
dency. 

"  Reasons  drawn  from  justice,  policy  and  necessity,  are  every  where  at 
hand  for  a  radical  separatioTi  from  Great  Britain.  From  justice,-  for  the  blood 
of  those  who  have  fallen  in  our  cause  cries  aloud,  '  It  is  time  to  part.'  From 
necessity,-  because  she  hath,  of  herself,  repudiated  us,  by  a  rapid  succession 
of  insult,  injury,  robbery,  murder,  and  a  formal  declaration  of -war.  These  are  but 
few,  and  some  of  the  weakest  arguments,  which  the  great  volume  of  our 
oppression  opens  to  every  spirited  American. 

"  It  cannot  be  a  violation  of  our  faith,  now  to  reject  the  terms  of  1763. 
They  are  a  qualified  slavery  at  best,  and  were  acceptable  to  us,  not  as 
the  extent  of  our  right,  but  the  probable  cause  of  peace ;  but  since  the 
day  in  which  they  were  most  humbly  offered,  as  the  end  of  animosities, 
an  interval  hath  passed,  marked  with  tyranny  intolerable. 

"  We,  therefore,  whose  names  are  hereunto  subscribed,  do  request  and 
instruct  you,  our  delegates  (provided  no  just  and  honourable  terms  are  offer- 
ed by  the  king)  to  exert  your  utmost  ability,  in  the  next  convention, 
towards  dissolving  the  connexion  between  America  and  Great  Britain,  totally. 
fixai.lt,  and  ieeevocablt." 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  193 

we  can  longer  sustain  the  great  struggle  we  are  mak- 
ing, in  this  situation."  Having  then  directed  their 
attention  to  certain  specific  subjects  which  required 
attention,  he  concluded  his  short,  but  impressive  address, 
by  exhorting  the  members  to  calmness,  unanimity,  and 
diligence. 

On  the  fifteenth  of  May,  Mr.  Gary  reported  from  the 
committee  of  the  whole  house  on  the  state  of  the  co- 
lony, the  following  preamble  and  resolutions,  which 
were  unanimously  adopted:    ■ 

"  Forasmuch  as  all  the  endeavours  of  the  United  Colo- 
nies, by  the  most  decent  representations  and  petitions  to 
the  king  and  parliament  of  Great  Britain,  to  restore 
peace  and  security  to  America  under  the  British  govern- 
ment, and  a  re-union  with  that  people  upon  just  and 
liberal  terms,  instead  of  a  redress  of  grievances,  have 
produced,  from  an  imperious  and  vindictive  administra- 
tion, increased  insult,  oppression,  and  a  vigorous  attempt 
to  effect  our  total  destruction.  By  a  late  act,  all  these 
colonies  are  declared  to  be  in  rebellion,  and  out  of  the 
protection  of  the  British  crown;  our  properties  sub- 
jected to  confiscation;  our  people,  when  captivated, 
compelled  to  join  in  the  murder  and  plunder  of  their 
relations  and  countrymen;  and  all  former  rapine  and 
oppression  of  Americans  declared  legal  and  just. 
Fleets  and  armies  are  raised,  and  the  aid  of  foreign 
troops  engaged  to  assist  these  destructive  purposes. 
The  king's  representative  in  this  colony  hath  not  only 
withheld  all  the  powers  of  government,  from  operating 
for  our  safety,  but,  having  retired  on  board  an  armed 
ship,  is  carrying  on  a  piratical  and  savage  war  against 
us,  tempting  our  slaves,  by  every  artifice,  to  resort  to 
him,  and  training  and  employing  them  against  their 

Bb 


194  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

masters.  In  this  state  of  extreme  danger,  we  have  no 
alternative  left,  but  an  abject  submission  to  the  will  of 
those  overbearing  tyrants,  or  a  total  separation  from  the 
crown  and  government  of  Great  Britain:  uniting  and 
exerting  the  strength  of  all  America  for  defence,  and 
forming  alliances  with  foreign  powers  for  commerce  and 
aid  in  war.  Wherefore,  appealing  to  the  Searcher  of 
hearts  for  the  sincerity  of  former  declarations,  express- 
ing our  desire  to  preserve  the  connexion  with  that 
nation,  and  that  we  are  driven  from  that  inclination  by 
their  wicked  councils,  and  the  eternal  laws  of  self- 
preservation, 

"  Resolved,  unanimously,  That  the  delegates  ap- 
pointed to  represent  this  colony  in  general  congress,  be 
instructed  to  propose   to   that  respectable   body,   to 

DECLARE  THE  UNITED  COLONIES  FREE  AND  INDEPENDENT 

states,  absolved  from  all  allegiance  to,  or  dependence 
upon,  the  crown  or  parliament  of  Great  Britain;  and 
that  they  give  the  assent  of  this  colony  to  such  declara- 
tion, and  to  whatever  measures  may  be  thought  proper 
and  necessary  by  the  congress  for  forming  foreign  alli- 
ances, and  a  confederation  of  the  colonies,  at 
such  time,  and  in  the  manner,  as  to  them  shall  seem 
best.  Provided,  that  the  power  of  forming  government 
for,  and  the  regulations  of,  the  internal  concerns  of 
each  colony,  be  left  to  the  respective  colonial  legisla- 
tures. 

"  Resolved,  unanimously,  That  a  committee  be  ap- 
pointed to  prepare  a  declaration  of  rights,  and 
such  a  plan  of  government  as  will  be  most  likely  to 
maintain  peace  and  order  in  this  colony,  and  secure 
substantial  and  equal  liberty  to  the  people." 

This  measure  was  followed  by  the  most  lively  demon- 
strations of  joy.    The  spirit  of  the  times  is  interestingly 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  195 

manifested  by  the  following  paragraph  from  Purdie's 
paper  of  the  1 7th  of  May,  which  immediately  succeeds 
the  annunciation  of  the  resolutions. 

"  In  consequence  of  the  above  resolutions,  univer- 
sally regarded  as  the  only  door  which  will  lead  to  safety 
and  prosperity,  some  gentlemen  made  a  handsome  col- 
lection for  the  purpose  of  treating  the  soldiery,  who 
next  day  were  paraded  in  Waller's  grove,  before  briga- 
dier-general Lewis,  attended  by  the  gentlemen  of  the 
committee  of  safety,  the  members  of  the  general  con- 
vention, the  inhabitants  of  this  city,  &c.  &c.  The 
resolutions  being  read  aloud  to  the  army,  the  following 
toasts  were  given,  each  of  them  accompanied  by  a  dis- 
charge of  the  artillery  and  small  arms,  and  the  acclama- 
tions of  all  present: — 

"  1.  The  American  Independent  States. 

"  2.  The  grand  Congress  of  the  United  States,  and 
their  respective  legislatures. 

"  3.  General  Washington,  and  victory  to  the  Ameri- 
can arms. 

"  The  Union  Flag  of  the  American  states  waved  upon 
the  capitol  during  the  whole  of  this  ceremony;  which 
being  ended,  the  soldiers  partook  of  the  refreshments 
prepared  for  them  by  the  affection  of  their  countrymen, 
and  the  evening  concluded  with  illuminations,  and  other 
demonstrations  of  joy;  every  one  seeming  pleased  that 
the  domination  of  Great  Britain  was  now  at  an  end,  so 
wickedly  and  tyrannically  exercised  for  these  twelve  or 
thirteen  years  past,  notwithstanding  our  repeated 
prayers  and  remonstrances  for  redress." 

The  committee  appointed  to  prepare  the  declaration 
and  plan  of  government,  called  for  by  the  last  resolution, 
were  the  following:  Mr.  Archibald  Cary,  Mr.  Meriwe- 


196  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

ther  Smith,  Mr.  Mercer,  Mr.  Henry  Lee,  Mr.  Trea- 
surer, Mr.  Henry,  Mr.  Dandridge,  Mr.  Gilmer,  Mr. 
Bland,  Mr.  Digges,  Mr.  Carrington,  Mr.  Thomas  Lud- 
well  Lee,  Mr.  Cabell,  Mr.  Jones,  Mr.  Blair,  Mr.  Flem- 
ing, Mr.  Tazewell,  Mr.  Richard  Cary,  Mr.  Bullitt,  Mr. 
Watts,  Mr.  Banister,  Mr.  Page,  Mr.  Starke,  Mr.  David 
Mason,  Mr.  Adams,  Mr.  Read,  and  Mr.  Thomas  Lewis; 
to  whom  were  afterwards  successively  added,  Mr.  Madi- 
son, Mr.  Rutherford,  Mr.  Watkins,  Mr.  George  Mason, 
Mr.  Harvie,  Mr.  Curie,  and  Mr.  Holt. 

On  Wednesday,  the  12th  of  June  following,  that 
declaration  of  rights  which  stands  prefixed  to  our 
statutes,  was  reported  and  adopted  without  a  dissenting 
voice;  as  was  also,  on  Saturday  the  29th  of  the  same 
month,  the  present  plan  of  our  government.* 

The  salary  of  the  governor  to  be  appointed  under  the 
new  constitution,  was  immediately  fixed  by  a  resolution 
of  the  house  at  one  thousand  pounds  per  annum ;  and 

*  The  striking'  similitude  between  the  recital  of  wrongs  prefixed  to  the 
constitution  of  Virginia,  and  that  which  was  afterwards  prefixed  to  the  de- 
claration of  independence  of  the  United  States,  is  of  itself  sufficient  to  esta- 
blish the  fact  that  they  are  from  the  same  pen.  But  the  constitution  of  Vir- 
ginia preceded  the  declaration  of  independence,  by  nearly  a  month ;  and 
was  wholly  composed  and  adopted  while  Mr.  Jefferson  is  known  to  have 
been  out  of  the  state,  attending  the  session  of  congress  at  Philadelpliia. 
From  these  facts  alone,  a  doubt  might  naturally  arise  whether  he  was,  as 
he  has  always  been  reputed,  the  author  of  that'  celebrated  instrument, 
the  declaration  of  American  independence,  or  at  least  a  recital  of  grievances 
which  ushers  it  in ;  or  whether  this  part  of  it  at  least,  had  not  been  borrow- 
ed from  the  preamble  to  the  constitution  of  Virginia.  To  remove  this  doubt, 
it  is  proper  to  state,  that  there  now  exists  among  the  archives  of  this  state, 
an  original  rough  draught  of  a  constitution  for  Virginia,  in  the  hand-writing 
of  Mr.  Jefferson,  containing  this  identical  preamble,  and  which  was  for- 
warded by  him  from  Philadelphia,  to  his  friend  Mr.  Wythe,  to  be  submitted 
to  the  committee  of  the  house  of  delegates.  The  body  of  the  constitution  is 
taken  principally  from  a  plan  proposed  by  Mr.  George  Mason ;  and  had  been 
adopted  by  the  committee  before  the  arrival  of  Mr.  Jefferson's  plan :  his 
preamble  however,  was  prefixed  to  the  instrument ;  and  some  of  the  modi- 
fications proposed  by  him,  introduced  into  the  body  of  it. 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  197 

the  house  proceeded  to  elect  forthwith  the  first  repub- 
lican governor  for  the  commonwealth  of  Virginia.  This 
was  the  touchstone  of  public  favour.  The  office  was 
of  the  first  importance;  and  the  whole  state  was  open 
to  the  choice  of  the  house.  The  question  was  decided 
on  the  first  ballot.    The  votes  stood  thus: 

For  Patrick  Henry,  jun.  esq.  .  .  60 

Thomas  Nelson,  esq 45 

John  Page,  esq 1 

Whereupon  it  was  "  Resolved,  that  the  said  Patrick 
Henry,  jun.  esq.  be  governor  of  this  commonwealth,  to 
continue  in  that  office  until  the  end  of  the  succeeding 
session  of  assembly  after  the  last  of  March  next;  and 
that  Mr.  Mason,  Mr.  Henry  Lee,  Mr.  Digges,  Mr. 
Blair,  and  Mr.  Dandridge,  be  a  committee  to  wait  upon 
him,  and  notify  such  appointment. 


}> 


On  Monday,  the  1st  of  July,  Mr.  George  Mason,  of 
this  committee,  reported,  that  they  had  performed  the 
duty  assigned  them,  and  that  the  governor  had  been 
pleased  to  return  the  following  answer  to  the  conven- 
tion: 

".  To  the  honourable  the  president  and  house  of  con- 
vention. 
"  Gentlemen, 

"  The  vote  of  this  day,  appointing  me  governor  of 
the  commonwealth,  has  been  notified  to  me  in  the  most 
polite  and  obliging  manner,  by  George  Mason,  Henry 
Lee,  Dudley  Digges,  John  Blair,  and  Bartholomew 
Dandridge,  esquires. 


198  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

"  A  sense  of  the  high  and  unmerited  honour  confer- 
red upon  me  by  the  convention,  fills  my  heart  with 
gratitude,  which  I  trust  my  whole  life  will  manifest.  I 
take  this  earliest  opportunity  to  express  my  thanks, 
which  I  wish  to  >  convey  to  you,  gentlemen,  in  the 
strongest  terms  of  acknowledgment. 

"  When  I  reflect  that  the  tyranny  of  the  British  king 
and  parliament  hath  kindled  a  formidable  war,  now 
raging  throughout  this  wide  extended  continent,  and  in 
the  operations  of  which,  this  commonwealth  must  bear 
so  great  a  part;  and  that,  from  the  events  of  this  war, 
the  lasting  happiness  or  misery  of  a  great  proportion  of 
the  human  species  will  finally  result;  that,  in  order  to 
preserve  this  commonwealth  from  anarchy,  and  its 
attendant  ruin,  and  to  give  vigour  to  our  councils,  and 
effect  to  all  our  measures,  government  hath  been  neces- 
sarily assumed,  and  new  modelled;  that  it  is  exposed  to 
numberless  hazards,  and  perils,  in  its  infantine  state; 
that  it  can  never  attain  to  maturity,  or  ripen  into  firm- 
ness, unless  it  is  guarded  by  an  affectionate  assiduity, 
and  managed  by  great  abilities;  I  lament  my  want  of 
talents;  I  feel  my  mind  filled  with  anxiety  and  uneasi- 
ness, to  find  myself  so  unequal  to  the  duties  of  that  im- 
portant station,  to  which  I  am  called  by  the  favour  of 
my  fellow-citizens,  at  this  truly  critical  conjuncture. 
The  errors  of  my  conduct  shall  be  atoned  for,  so  far  as 
I  am  able,  by  unwearied  endeavours  to  secure  the  free- 
dom and  happiness  of  our  common  country. 

"  I  shall  enter  upon  the  duties  of  my  office,  when- 
ever you,  gentlemen,  shall  be  pleased  to  direct;  relying 
upon  the  known  wisdom  and  virtue  of  your  honourable 
house  to  supply  my  defects,  and  to  give  permanency  and 
success  to  that  system  of  government  which  you  have 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  199 

formed,  and  which  is  so  wisely  calculated  to  secure 
equal  liberty,  and  advance  human  happiness.  I  have 
the  honour  to  be,  gentlemen,  your  most  obedient  and 
very  humble  servant, 

"  P.  Henry,  jun." 


Mr.  Henry  was  also  immediately  greeted  with  the 
following  affectionate  address,  from  the  two  regiments 
which  he  had  recently  commanded: 

\  To  his  excellency  Patrick  Henry,  jun.  esq.  governor 
of  the  commonwealth  of  Virginia: — The  humble 
address  of  the  first  and  second  Virginia  regiments: 

'  May  it  please  your  excellency, 

"  Permit  us,  with  the  sincerest  sentiments  of  respect 
and  j^  to  congratulate  your  excellency  upon  your  un- 
solicited promotion  to  the  highest  honours  a  grateful 
people  can  bestow. 

"  Uninfluenced  by  private  ambition,  regardless  of 
sordid  interest,  you  have  uniformly  pursued  the  general 
good  of  your  country;  and  have  taught  the  world,  that 
an  ingenuous  love  of  the  rights  of  mankind,  an  inflexible 
resolution,  and  a  steady  perseverance  in  the  practice 
of  every  private  and  public  virtue,  lead  directly  to  pre- 
ferment, and  give  the  best  title  to  the  honours  of  our 
nncorrupted  and  vigorous  state. 

'  Once  happy  under  your  military  command,  we 
hope  for  more  extensive  blessings  from  your  civil  admi- 
nistration. 

•f  Intrusted  as  your  excellency  is,  in  some  measure, 
with  the  support  of  a  young  empire,  our  hearts  are 
willing,  and  arms  ready,  to  maintain  your  authority  as 
chief  magistrate;  happy  that  we  have  lived  to  see  the 


200  SKETCHES    OF   THE 

day,  when  freedom  and  equal  rights,  established  by  the 
voice  of  the  people,  shall  prevail  through  the  land.  We 
are,  may  it  please  your  excellency,  your  excellency's 
most  devoted  and  most  obedient  servants." 

To  which  he  returned  the  following  exquisite  an- 
swer:— 

"Gentlemen  of  the   first   and  second  Virginia  regi- 
ments, 

"  Your  address  does  me  the  highest  honour.  Be 
pleased  to  accept  my  most  cordial  thanks  for  your 
favourable  and  kind  sentiments  of  my  principles  and 
conduct. 

"  The  high  appointment  to  which  my  fellow-citizens 
have  called  me,  was  indeed,  unsolicited,  immerited. 
I  am  therefore,  under  increased  obligations  to  promote 
the  safety,  dignity,  and  happiness  of  the  common- 
wealth. 

"  While  the  civil  powers  are  employed  in  establish- 
ing a  system  of  government,  liberal,  equitable,  in  eveiy 
part  of  which  the  genius  of  equal  liberty  breathes  her 
blessed  influence,  to  you  is  assigned  the  glorious  task 
of  saving,  by  your  valour,  all  that  is  dear  to  mankind. 
Go  on,  gentlemen,  to  finish  the  great  work  you  have  so 
nobly  and  successfully  begun.  Convince  the  tyrants 
again,  that  they  shall  bleed,  that  America  will  bleed 
to  her  last  drop,  ere  their  wicked  schemes  find  suc- 
cess. 

"  The  remembrance  of  my  former  connexion  with 
you,  shall  be  ever  dear  to  me.  I  honour  your  profes- 
sion. I  revere  that  patriot  virtue  which,  in  your  con- 
duct, hath  produced  cheerful  obedience,  exemplary 
courage,  and  contempt  of  hardship  and  danger.     Be 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  201 

assured  gentlemen,  I  shall  feel  the  highest  pleasure, 
in  embracing  every  opportunity  to  contribute  to  your 
happiness  and  welfare;  and  I  trust  the  day  will  come, 
when  I  shall  make  one  of  those  that  will  hail  you 
among  the  triumphant  deliverers  of  America.  I  have  the 
honour  to  be,  gentlemen,  your  most  obedient  and  very 
humble  servant, 

"  P.  Henry,  jun."* 

The  first  council  appointed  under  the  constitution 
were,  John  Page,  Dudley  Digges,  John  Tayloe,  John 
Blair,  Benjamin  Harrison  of  Berkeley,  Bartholomew 
Dandridge,  Thomas  Nelson,  and  Charles  Carter  of 
Shirley,  esquires.  Mr.  Nelson  (the  same  gentleman 
who  had  received  so  honourable  a  vote  as  governor) 
declined  the  acceptance  of  the  office,  on  account  of 
his  age  and  infirmities;  and  his  place  was  supplied  by 
Mr.  Benjamin  Harrison  of  Brandon. 

The  governor's  palace,  together  with  the  out-build- 
ings belonging  to  it  in  Williamsburg,  having,  by  a 
previous  resolution,  been  appropriated  as  a  public  hos- 
pital, was,  by  a  resolution  of  the  first  of  July,  restored 
to  its  original  destination;  and  the  committee  who  had 
been  appointed  to  notify  the  governor  of  his  election, 
were  now  directed  to  inform  him  of  the  desire  of  the 
convention,  that  he  would  make  the  palace  his  place  of 
residence.  On  the  fifth  of  July,  the  sum  of  one 
thousand  pounds  was  directed,  by  the  house,  to  be  laid 


*  When  it  is  said  that  Mr.  Henry  was  not  successful  as  a  writer,  the  remark 
must  be  understood  as  applicable  only  to  those  extended  compositions,  in 
which  it  was  necessary  to  digest  and  arrange  a  mass  of  arguments  with  skill 
and  effect,  and  to  give  them  beauty,  as  well  as  order.  In  his  short  effusions, 
when  excited  by  strong  feelings,  he  was  sometimes  very  happy;  of  which 
the  above  answer  is  a  very  pleasing  specimen. 

CC 


202  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

out  in  furniture  for  the  palace,  including  the  furniture 
already  there  belonging  to  the  country;  and,  on  the 
same  day,  the  governor  and  members  of  the  privy 
council  took  their  respective  oaths  of  office,  and  enter- 
ed at  once,  upon  the  discharge  of  their  constitutional 
duties. 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  203 


SECTION  VII. 

Shortly  after  Mr.  Henry's  election  as  governor,  lord 
Dunmore  was  driven  from  Gwinn's  island  and  from  the 
state,  to  return  to  it  no  more;  and  Virginia  was  left  in 
repose  from  every  external  enemy.  No  opportunity, 
therefore,  was  afforded  to  the  governor  to  distinguish 
himself  in  the  exercise  of  that  important  constitutional 
power,  which  created  him  the  commander  in  chief  of 
the  forces  of  the  state.  Duties  however,  of  more 
importance  than  lustre,  remained  for  the  executive  of 
the  state — in  keeping  up  the  ardour  of  the  common- 
wealth in  the  public  cause — in  furnishing  and  forward- 
ing their  quota  of  military  supplies  to  the  grand  conti- 
nental army — in  awakening  the  spirit  of  the  state  to  the 
importance  of  discipline,  and  preparing  the  militia  for  the 
effectual  discharge  of  their  routine  of  duty — in  watching 
and  crushing  the  intrigues  of  the  tories  who  still  infested 
the  state,  and  went  about  clandestinely,  preaching  disaf- 
fection to  the  patriot  cause,  and  submission  to  Great 
Britain — in  counteracting  the  schemes  of  speculating 
monopolists  and  extortioners,  who  sought  to  avail  them- 
selves of  the  necessities  of  the  times,  and  to  grow  rich 
by  preying  on  the  misfortunes  of  the  people — in  short, 
in  eradicating  and  removing  those  numerous  moral 
diseases,  which  spring  up  with  so  much  fecundity,  and 
flourish  so  luxuriantly,  amid  the  calamities  of  a  revolu- 
tion— and  in  keeping  the  body  politic  pure  and  healthy 
in  all  its  parts.  The  numerous  and  well  directed  pro- 
clamations with  which  the  papers  of  the  day  abound, 
attest  the  vigilance  and  energy  with  which  these  duties 


204  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

were  performed.  To  enter  upon  a  detail  of  them, 
would  be  to  write  the  history  of  Virginia  during  this 
period,  instead  of  the  life  of  Mr  Henry;  a  work  wholly 
unnecessary,  since  it  has  been  already  executed  with 
minuteness  and  fidelity  by  an  elegant  writer,*  whose 
work  will  probably  see  the  light  before  these  sketches. 
I  shall  confine  myself  to  a  few  prominent  incidents  of 
Mr.  Henry's  administration,  on  account  of  some  of 
which,  a  degree  of  censure  has  been  unjustly  I  think, 
attached  to  his  character. 

The  fall  of  the  year  1776  was  one  of  the  darkest  and 
most  dispiriting  periods  of  the  revolution.     The  disas- 
ter at  Long  Island  had  occurred,  by  which  a  consi- 
derable portion  of  the  American  army  had  been  cut  off 
— a  garrison  of  between  three  and  four  thousand  men 
had  been  taken  at  fort  Washington — and  the  American 
general,  with  the  small  remainder,  disheartened  and  in 
want  of  every  kind  of  comfort,  was  retreating  through 
the  Jersies   before   an  overwhelming  power,  which 
spread  terror,  desolation,  and  death,  on  every  hand. 
This  was  fhe  period  of  which  Payne  in  his  crisis  used 
that  memorable  expression — "  these  are  the  times  which 
try  the  souls  of  men!"     For  a  short  time  the  courage  of 
the  country  fell.     Washington  alone  remained  erect 
and  surveyed  with  godlike  composure  the  storm  that 
raged  around  him.     Even  the  heroism  of  the  Virginia 
legislature  gave  way;  and,  in  a  season  of  despair,  the 
mad  project  of  a  dictator  was  seriously  meditated.  That 
Mr.  Henry  was  thought  of  for  this  office,  has  been 
alleged,  and  is  highly  probable;  but  that  the  project 
was  suggested  by  him,  or  even  received  his  countenance, 
I  have  met  with  no  one  who  will  venture  to  affirm. 

*  Mr.  L.  H.  Girardin,  the  continuator  of  Burk's  History  of  Virginia. 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  205 

There   is  a  tradition  that  col.  Archibald   Cary  the 
speaker  of  the  senate,  was  principally  instrumental  in 
crushing  this  project;  that  meeting  col.  Syme,  the  step- 
brother of  col.  Henry,  in  the  lobby  of  the  house,  he 
accosted  him  very  fiercely  in  terms  like  these: — "  I  am 
told  that  your  brother  wishes  to  be  dictator:  tell  him, 
from  me,  that  the  day  of  his  appointment  shall  be  the 
day  of  his  death — for  he  shall  feel  my  dagger  in  his 
heart  before  the  sunset  of  that  day:"  and  the  tradition 
adds,  that  col.  Syme  in  great  agitation,  declared,  "that 
if  such  a  project  existed,  his  brother  had  no  hand  in  it, 
for  that  nothing  could  be  more  foreign  to  him,  than  to 
countenance  any  office  which  could  endanger,  in  the 
most  distant  manner,  the  liberties  of  his  country."  The 
intrepidity  and  violence  of  col.  Cary's  character  renders 
the  tradition  probable;  but  it  furnishes  no  proof  of  Mr. 
Henry's  implication  in  the  scheme.     It  is  most  certain, 
that  both  himself  and  his  friends  have  firmly  and  uni- 
formly persisted  in  asserting  his  innocence;  and  there 
seems  to  be  neither  candour  nor  justice  in  imputing  to 
him  without  evidence,  a  scheme  which  might  just  as 
well  have  originated  in  the  assembly  itself.     It  was  not 
more  than  a  month  afterwards,  that  congress  actually 
did,  with  relation  to  general  Washington,  very  nearly 
what  the  Virginia  legislature  are  said  to  have  contem- 
plated in  regard  to  Mr.  Henry:  they  invested  him  with 
powers  very  little  short  of  dictatorial:  yet  no  one  ever 
suspected  general  Washington  of  having  prompted  the 
measure.     Why  then  shall  Mr.  Henry  be  suspected? 
Neither  general  Washington  himself,  nor  any  other 
patriot,  had  maintained  the  principles  of  the  revolution 
with  more   consistency  and   uniformity  than  Patrick 
Henry:  and  it  will  certainly  never  satisfy  a  fair  enquirer. 


206  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

to  attempt  to  balance  a  suspicion,  without  the  shadow 
of  proof,  against  the  whole  course  of  a  long  and  pa- 
triotic life.  The  charge,  moreover,  seems  prepos- 
terous. What  advantage  could  a  rational  man  promise 
himself  from  the  dictatorship  of  a  single  state,  embarked 
with  twelve  other  sovereign  and  independent  states,  in 
one  common  cause;  a  cause  too,  now  so  well  under- 
stood by  the  whole  body  of  the  American  people,  and 
in  which  all  their  souls  were  so  intensely  engaged? 
The  man  who  was  at  the  head  of  the  armies  of  the 
union,  might  have  played  the  part  of  Csesar  or  Crom- 
well, had  he  possessed  their  wicked  spirit;  but  what 
could  the  dictator  of  a  single  state  do,  and  that  too,  a 
state  of  firm  and  enlightened  patriots! 

It  is  impossible  to  believe  that  the  legislature  them- 
selves could  have  entertained  a  doubt  of  Mr.  Henry's 
innocence;  since  at  the  next  annual  election  for  gover- 
nor, which  took  place  on  the  30th  of  May  1777,  he 
was  re-elected  unanimously;  the  house  being  composed 
of  nearly  the  same  members,  and  the  same  colonel 
Cary  being  speaker  of  the  senate.  This  honourable 
proof  of  confidence,  by  those  who  best  knew  the  whole 
case — who  watched  with  a  scrutiny  so  severely  jealous, 
the  conduct  of  our  prominent  men — and  among  whom, 
were  some  who  derived  no  pleasure  from  the  public 
honours  of  Mr.  Henry—will  be  decisive  of  this  ques- 
tion, with  every  man  who  is  dispassionately  searching 
for  the  truth,  and  is  willing  to  find  it. 

"  This  very  honourable  mark  of  the  confidence  of  the 
legislature,  in  re-electing  him  unanimously  to  the  office 
of  governor,  affected  Mr.  Henry  most  sensibly;  and  to 
the  committee  who  announced  it  to  him,  he  gave  the 
following  answer: 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  207 

"  Gentlemen, 

"  The  signal  honour  conferred  on  me  by  the 
general  assembly  in  their  choice  of  me  to  be  the  gover- 
nor of  this  commonwealth,  demands  my  best  acknow- 
ledgments, which  I  beg  the  favour  of  you  to  convey  to 
them  in  the  most  acceptable  manner. 

"  I  shall  execute  the  duties  of  that  high  station,  to 
which  I  am  again  called  by  the  favour  of  my  fellow- 
citizens,  according  to  the  best  of  my  abilities,  and  I 
shall  rely  upon  the  candour  and  wisdom  of  the  as- 
sembly, to  excuse  and  supply  my  defects.  The  good 
of  the  commonwealth  shall  be  the  only  object  of  my 
pursuit,  and  I  shall  measure  my  happiness  according 
to  the  success  which  shall  attend  my  endeavours  to 
establish  the  public  liberty.  I  beg  to  be  presented  to 
the  assembly;  and  that  they  and  you  will  be  assured,  that 
I  am,  with  every  sentiment  of  the  highest  regard,  their 
and  your  most  obedient  and  very  humble  servant, 

"  P.  Henry." 

It  was  in  the  course  of  this  year's  administration  of 
the  government  by  Mr.  Heniy,  that  that  memorable 
plot  which  disgraces  our  history,  was  formed  to  sup- 
plant general  Washington.  This  is  said  to  have  pro- 
ceeded from  the  glory  which  general  Gates  had  gained 
by  the  capture  of  Burgoyne  and  his  army  at  Saratoga, 
and  was  believed  to  have  been  suggested  by  general 
Gates  himself.  The  plot  is  said  to  have  been  an  ex- 
tensive one,  and  to  have  embraced  some  of  the  mem- 
bers of  congress,  and  many  officers  of  the  army.  The 
high  estimate  which  Mr.  Henry  had  formed  of  the 
abilities  of  general  Washington,  while  that  illustrious 
man  was  comparatively  unknown  to  his  countrymen, 


208  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

has  been  already  stated.  This  estimate,  instead  of  hav- 
ing been  lowered,  had  been  confirmed  and  raised  by 
subsequent  events.  Mr.  Henry  was  too  cool  and  judi- 
cious an  observer  of  events,  to  have  imputed  to  the 
commander  in  chief,  the  disasters  of  the  autumn  of 
1776.  His  masterly  retreat  through  the  Jersies,  the 
brilliant  strokes  of  generalship  exhibited  at  Trenton 
and  Princeton,  and  above  all,  that  singular  constancy 
of  soul  with  which  he  braved  adversity,  had  excited  his 
grateful  admiration,  and  established  Washington  in  his 
heart  as  one  of  the  first  of  human  beings.  He  not  only 
admired  him  as  a  general,  but  revered  him  as  a  patriot, 
and  loved  him  as  a  friend.  Feeling  for  general  Wash- 
ington sentiments  like  these,  the  reader  may  judge  of 
the  indignation  and  horror  with  which  he  read  the  fol- 
lowing anonymous  letter,  addressed  to  him  by  one  of 
the  conspirators  against  that  father  of  his  country. 

Yorktown,  January  12th,  1778. 

"  Dear  sir, 

"  The  common  danger  of  our  country  first  brought 
you  and  me  together.  I  recollect  with  pleasure  the 
influence  of  your  conversation  and  eloquence  upon  the 
opinions  of  this  country,  in  the  beginning  of  the  present 
controversy.  You  first  taught  us  to  shake  off  our 
idolatrous  attachment  to  royalty,  and  to  oppose  its  en- 
croachments upon  our  liberties,  with  our  very  lives. 
By  these  means  you  saved  us  from  ruin.  The  inde- 
pendence of  America  is  the  offspring  of  that  liberal 
spirit  of  thinking  and  acting,  which  followed  the  de- 
struction of  the  spectres  of  kings,  and  the  mighty  power 
of  Great  Britain. 

"But,  sir,  we  have  only  passed  the  Red  Sea.     A 
dreary  wilderness  is  still  before  us,  and  unless  a  Moses 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  209 

or  a  Joshua  are  raised  up  in  our  behalf,  we  must  perish 
before  we  reach  the  promised  land.  We  have  nothing 
to  fear  from  our  enemies  on  the  way.  General  Howe, 
it  is  true,  has  taken  Philadelphia;  but  he  has  only 
changed  his  prison.  His  dominions  are  boimded  on 
all  sides,  by  his  out-sentries.  America  can  only  be 
undone  by  herself.  She  looks  up  to  her  councils  and 
arms  for  protection;  but  alas!  what  are  they?  Her 
representation  in  congress  dwindled  to  only  twenty-one 
members — her  Adams — her  Wilson — her  Henry,  are 
no  more  among  them.  Her  councils  weak — and  par- 
tial remedies  applied  constantly,  for  universal  diseases. 
Her  army — what  is  it?  a  major-general  belonging  to  it, 
called  it  a  few  days  ago,  in  my  hearing,  a  mob.  Dis- 
cipline unknown  or  wholly  neglected.  The  quarter- 
master and  commissary's  departments,  filled  with  idle- 
ness, ignorance,  and  peculation — our  hospitals  crowded 
with  six  thousand  sick,  but  half  provided  with  necessa- 
ries or  accommodations,  and  more  dying  in  them  in  one 
month,  than  perished  in  the  field  during  the  whole  of 
the  last  campaign.  The  money  depreciating,  without 
any  effectual  measures  being  taken  to  raise  it — the 
country  distracted  with  the  Don  Quixote  attempts  to 
regulate  the  price  of  provisions — an  artificial  famine 
created  by  it,  and  a  real  one  dreaded  from  it — the 
spirit  of  the  people  failing  through  a  more  intimate 
acquaintance  with  the  causes  of  our  misfortunes — many 
submitting  daily  to  general  Howe — and  more  wishing  to 
do  it,  only  to  avoid  the  calamities  which  threaten  our 
country.  But  is  our  case  desperate?  by  no  means.  We 
have  wisdom,  virtue,  and  strength  eno'  to  save  us,  if 
they  could  be  called  into  action.  The  northern  army 
has  shown  us  what  Americans  are  capable  of  doing, 
with  a  general  at  their  head.    The  spirit  of  the  southern 

Dd 


210  .SKETCHES  OF  THE 

army  is  no  way  inferior  to  the  spirit  of  the  northern.  A 
Gates,  a  Lee,  or  a  Conway,  would  in  a  few  weeks, 
render  them  an  irresistible  body  of  men.  The  last  of 
the  above  officers,  has  accepted  of  the  new  office  of 
inspector  general  of  our  army,  in  order  to  reform 
abuses;  but  the  remedy  is  only  a  palliative  one.  In  one 
of  his  letters  to  a  friend  he  says,  e  a  great  and  good 
God  hath  decreed  America  to  be  free — or  the 
****^^  and  weak  counsellors,  would  have  ruined 
her  long  ago/  You  may  rest  assured  of  each  of  the 
facts  related  in  this  letter.  The  author  of  it  is  one  of 
your  Philadelphia  friends.  A  hint  of  his  name,  if  found 
out  by  the  hand-writing,  must  not  be  mentioned  to  your 
most  intimate  friend.  Even  the  letter  must  be  thrown 
in  the  fire.  But  some  of  its  contents  ought  to  be  made 
public,  in  order  to  awaken,  enlighten,  and  alarm  our 
country.  I  rely  upon  your  prudence,  and  am,  dear  sir, 
with  my  usual  attachment  to  you,  and  to  our  beloved 
independence,  yours  sincerely/' 
"  His  excellency  P.  Henry  " 


Mr.  Hemy  did  not  hesitate  a  moment  as  to  the  course 
which  it  was  proper  for  him  to  take  with  this  perfidious 
letter:  he  enclosed  it  forthwith,  to  general  Washington, 
in  the  following  frank  and  high  minded  communica- 
tion: 

"  Williamsburg,  February  20, 1778. 

Ci  Dear  sir, 

"You  will,  no  doubt,  be  surprised  at  seeing  the 
enclosed  letter,  in  which  the  encomiums  bestowed  on 
me  are  as  undeserved,  as  the  censures  aimed  at  you 
are  unjust.  I  am  sorry  there  should  be  one  man  who 
counts  himself  my  friend,  who  is  not  yours. 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  211 

"  Perhaps  I  give  you  needless  trouble  in  handing  you 
this  paper.  The  writer  of  it  may  be  too  insignificant 
to  deserve  any  notice.  If  I  knew  this  to  be  the  case,  I 
should  not  have  intruded  on  your  time,  which  is  so 
precious.  But  there  may  possibly,  be  some  scheme  or 
party  forming  to  your  prejudice.  The  enclosed  leads 
to  such  a  suspicion.  Believe  me,  sir,  I  have  too  high 
a  sense  of  the  obligations  America  has  to  you,  to  abet 
or  countenance  so  unworthy  a  proceeding.  The  most 
exalted  merit  hath  ever  been  found  to  attract  envy. 
But  I  please  myself  with  the  hope,  that  the  same  for- 
titude and  greatness  of  mind,  which  have  hitherto  braved 
all  the  difficulties  and  dangers  inseparable  from  your 
station,  will  rise  superior  to  every  attempt  of  the  envious 
partisan. 

"  I  really  cannot  tell  who  is  the  writer  of  this  letter, 
which  not  a  little  perplexes  me.  The  hand-writing  is 
altogether  strange  to  me. 

"  To  give  you  the  trouble  of  this,  gives  me  pain.  It 
would  suit  my  inclination  better,  to  give  you  some 
assistance  in  the  great  business  of  the  war.  But  I  will 
not  conceal  any  thing  from  you,  by  which  you  may  be 
affected;  for  I  really  think,  your  personal  welfare  and 
the  happiness  of  America,  are  intimately  connected.  I 
beg  you  will  be  assured  of  that  high  regard  and  esteem, 
with  which  I  ever  am,  dear  sir,  your  affectionate  friend 
and  very  humble  servant, 

"  P.  Henry."  * 

"  His  excellency  general  Washington." 


Not  having  received  any  answer  to  this  letter,  and 
being  filled  with  solicitude  by  the  wicked  conspiracy,  he 
again  wrote  to  general  Washington,  as  follows: 


212  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

"  Williamsburg,  March  oth,  1778. 

"  Dear  sir, 

"  By  an  express  which  colonel  Finnie  sent  to  camp, 
I  enclosed  you  an  anonymous  letter,  which  I  hope  got 
safe  to  hand.  I  am  anxious  to  hear  something  that 
will  serve  to  explain  the  strange  affair,  which  I  am  now 
informed  is  taken  up  respecting  you.  Mr.  Custis  has 
just  paid  us  a  visit,  and  by  him  I  learn  sundry  particu- 
lars concerning  general  Mifflin,  that  much  surprised 
me.  It  is  very  hard  to  trace  the  schemes  and  wind- 
ings of  the  enemies  to  America.  I  really  thought  that 
man  its  friend:  however,  I  am  too  far  from  him  to  judge 
of  his  present  temper. 

"  While  you  face  the  armed  enemies  of  our  liberty  in 
the  field,  and  by  the  favour  of  God,  have  been  kept  un- 
hurt, I  trust  your  country  will  never  harbour  in  her 
bosom,  the  miscreant  who  would  ruin  her  best  sup- 
porter. I  wish  not  to  flatter;  but  when  arts  unworthy 
honest  men  are  used  to  defame  and  traduce  you,  I 
think  it  not  amiss,  but  a  duty,  to  assure  you  of  that  esti- 
mation in  which  the  public  hold  you.  Not  that  I  think 
any  testimony  I  can  bear,  is  necessary  for  your  support, 
or  private  satisfaction;  for  a  bare  recollection  of  what  is 
past,  must  give  you  sufficient  pleasure  in  every  circum- 
stance of  life.  But  I  cannot  help  assuring  you  on  this 
occasion,  of  the  high  sense  of  gratitude  which  all  ranks 
of  men,  in  this  your  native  country  bear  to  you.  It  will 
give  me  sincere  pleasure  to  manifest  my  regards,  and 
render  my  best  services  to  you  or  yours.  I  do  not  like 
to  make  a  parade  of  these  things,  and  I  know  you  are 
not  fond  of  it:  however,  I  hope  the  occasion  will  plead 
my  excuse. 

"  The  assembly  have  at  length,  empowered  the  exe- 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  213 

cutive  here,  to  provide  the  Virginia  troops  serving  with 
you,  with  clothes,  &c.  I  am  making  provision  accord- 
ingly, and  hope  to  do  something  towards  it.  Every 
possible  assistance  from  government  is  afforded  the 
commissary  of  provisions,  whose  department  has  not 
been  attended  to.  It  was  taken  up  by  me  too  late  to  do 
much.  Indeed  the  load  of  business  devolved  on  me,  is 
too  great  to  be  managed  well.  A  French  ship  mount- 
ing thirty  guns,  that  has  been  long  chased  by  the 
English  cruisers,  has  got  into  Carolina,  as  I  hear  last 
night. 

"  Wishing  you  all  possible  felicity,  I'  am,  my  dear 
sir,  your  ever  affectionate  friend,  and  very  humble 
servant, 

"  P.  Henry." 

"  His  excellency  general  Washington." 

In  reply,  Mr.  Henry  received  shortly  afterwards,  the 
two  following  very  cordial  letters  from  the  general: 

"  Valley  Forge,  March  27th,  1778. 

"  Dear  sir, 

"  About  eight  days  past,  I  was  honoured  with  your 
favour  of  the  20th  ultimo.  Your  friendship,  sir,  in 
transmitting  me  the  anonymous  letter  you  had  receiv- 
ed, lays  me  under  the  most  grateful  obligations;  and,  if 
any  thing  could  give  a  still  further  claim  to  my  acknow- 
ledgments, it  is  the  very  polite  and  delicate  terms  in 
which  you  have  been  pleased  to  make  the  communica- 
tion. 

"  I  have  ever  been  happy  in  supposing  that  I  held  a 
place  in  your  esteem,  and  the  proof  of  it  you  have  af- 


214  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

forded  on  this  occasion,  makes  me  peculiarly  so.  The 
favourable  light  in  which  you  hold  me  is  truly  flatter- 
ing; but  I  should  feel  much  regret,  if  I  thought  the 
happiness  of  America  so  intimately  connected  with  my 
personal  welfare,  as  you  so  obligingly  seem  to  consider 
it.  All  I  can  say  is,  that  she  has  ever  had,  and  I  trust, 
she  ever  will  have  my  honest  exertions  to  promote 
her  interest.  I  cannot  hope  that  my  services  have  been 
the  best,  but  my  heart  tells  me  they  have  been  the  best 
that  I  could  render. 

"  That  I  may  have  erred  in  using  the  means  in  my 
power  for  accomplishing  the  objects  of  the  arduous,  ex- 
alted station  with  which  I  am  honoured,  I  cannot  doubt: 
nor  do  I  wish  my  conduct  to  be  exempted  from  the  re- 
prehension it  may  deserve.  Error  is  the  portion  of  hu- 
manity, and  to  censure  it,  whether  committed  by  this 
or  that  public  character,  is  the  prerogative  of  freemen. 

*  w  it  *  *  w  w  ifTirTwwTiPirwwTir  iF.ip  if     vF     -JF    w*?r 

#■&    ^     £tr    slfc    ilfc     $k    it:    -V-     •&    =ifc     sit     -Vr     ->/-     ^     -v-     -V-     -V-    -V-     •«?     -V-     -it-     4t-     -V-      4£>      -i&      -"-       At, 

*^    ^    ife    *    ife    '■'i    ^fe    ^    •¥■    ^fe    -It    ■■It    ^-    it    *    •if-    ^Sr    *    ^    ^    *    «w-   *     -V*       ",     w 

"  This  is  not  the  only  secret,  insidious  attempt,  that 
has  been  made  to  wound  my  reputation.  There  have 
been  others  equally  base,  cruel,  and  ungenerous;  be- 
cause conducted  with  as  little  frankness,  and  proceeding 
from  views,  perhaps,  as  personally  interested. 
"  I  am,  dear  sir,  &c. 

"  Geo.  Washington." 
"  To  his  excellency  Patrick  Henry,  esq. 
governor  of  Virginia." 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  215 

«  Camp,  March  28th,  1778. 

'*  Dear  sir, 

"Just as  I  was  about  to  close  my  letter  of  yesterday, 
your  favour  of  the  fifth  instant  came  to  hand.  I  can  only 
thank  you,  again  in  the  language  of  the  most  undissem- 
bled  gratitude,  for  your  friendship,  and  assure  you,  the 
indulgent  disposition,  which  Virginia  in  particular,  and 
the  states  in  general,  entertain  towards  me,  gives  me  the 
most  sensible  pleasure.  The  approbation  of  my  coun- 
try is  what  I  wish;  and  as  far  as  my  abilities  and  op- 
portunity will  permit,  I  hope  I  shall  endeavour  to  de- 
serve it.  It  is  the  highest  reward  to  a  feeling  mind ; 
and  happy  are  they  who  so  conduct  themselves  as  to 
merit  it. 

"  The  anonymous  letter  with  which  you  were  pleased 
to  favour  me,  was  written  by  ************    so  far 

as  I  can  judge  from  the  similitude  of  hands.    ******* 
****************************# 

"  My  caution  to  avoid  every  thing  that  could  injure 
the  service,  prevented  me  from  communicating,  except 
to  a  very  few  of  my  friends,  the  intrigues  of  a  faction 
which  I  knew  was  formed  against  me,  since  it  might 
serve  to  publish  our  internal  dissensions;  but  their  own 
restless  zeal  to  advance  their  views,  has  too  clearly 
betrayed  them,  and  made  concealment  on  my  part 
fruitless.  I  cannot  precisely  mark  the  extent  of  their 
views;  but  it  appeared  in  general,  that  general  Gates 
was  to  be  exalted  on  the  ruin  of  my  reputation  and 
influence.  This  I  am  authorized  to  say  from  unde- 
niable facts  in  my  own  possession — from  publications, 
the  evident  scope  of  which  could  not  be  mistaken — 
and  from  private  detractions  industriously  circulated. 
************ *?  ft  is  commonly  supposed,  bore  the 


216  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

second  part  in  the  cabal;  and  general  Conway,  I 
know,  was  a  very  active  and  malignant  partisan;  but  I 
have  good  reason  to  believe,  that  their  machinations 
have  recoiled  most  sensibly  upon  themselves.  I  am, 
dear  sir,  &c. 

"  Geo.  Washington." 
"  His  excellency  Patrick  Henry,  esq. 
governor  of  Virginia." 

The  plot  did  recoil  on  its  contrivers,  and  left  general 
Washington  more  firmly  established  than  ever  in  the 
confidence  of  his  countrymen. 

At  the  spring  session  of  1778,  Mr.  Henry  was  again 
unanimously  re-elected  to  the  office  of  governor.  Mr. 
Jefferson,  Mr.  Dandridge,  and  Mr.  Page,  the  committee 
appointed  to  announce  to  him  that  event,  received  and 
reported  the  following  answer: 

"  Gentlemen, 

"  The  general  assembly,  in  again  electing  me 
governor  of  this  commonwealth,  have  done  me  veiy  sig- 
nal honour.  I  trust  that  their  confidence  thus  continued 
in  me,  will  not  be  misplaced. 

"  I  beg  you  will  be  pleased  gentlemen,  to  present 
me  to  the  general  assembly,  in  terms  of  grateful  ac- 
knowledgment for  this  fresh  instance  of  their  favour 
towards  me;  and  to  assure  them,  that  my  best  endea- 
vours shall  be  used  to  promote  the  public  good,  in  that 
station  to  which  they  have  once  more  been  pleased  to 
call  me." 

At  this  same  session,  an  act  was  passed,  on  account 
of  which  both  Mr.  Henry  and  the  legislature,  have  been 
it  is  thought,  improperly  censured.     I  mean  the  act  to 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  217 

attaint  Josiah  Philips.  This  man,  in  the  summer  of 
1777,  at  the  head  of  a  banditti,  commenced  a  course  of 
crimes,  in  the  counties  of  Norfolk  and  Princess  Anne, 
which  spread  terror  and  consternation  on  every  hand. 
Availing  himself  of  the  disaffection  which  prevailed  in 
that  quarter,  and  taking  refuge  from  occasional  pur- 
suit in  the  fastnesses  of  the  Dismal  Swamp,  he  had 
carried  on  a  species  of  war  against  the  innocent  and 
defenceless,  at  the  bare  mention  of  which  humanity 
shudders.  Scarcely  a  night  passed,  without  witnessing 
the  shrieks  of  women  and  children,  flying  by  the  light 
of  their  own  burning  houses,  from  the  assaults  of  these 
merciless  wretches;  and  every  day  was  marked  by  the. 
desolation  of  some  farm,  by  robberies  on  the  highway, 
or  the  assassination  of  some  individual,  whose  patriot- 
ism had  incurred  the  displeasure  of  this  fierce  and 
bloody  leader  of  banditti.  Every  attempt  to  take  them 
had,  hitherto  proved  abortive;  when,  in  May,  1778,  the 
governor  received  the  following  letter  from  col.  John 
Wilson: 


"  Norfolk  County,  May  20th,  1778. 

-  Honourable  sir, 

cc  I  received  your  letter  the  14th  inst  of  the  12  th 
April,  respecting  the  holding  the  militia  in  readiness, 
and  my  attention  to  the  arms  and  accoutrements,  which 
I  shall  endeavour  to  comply  with  as  far  as  in  my  power: 
that  much  however,  may  not  be  expected  from  this 
county,  I  beg  to  observe,  that  the  militia,  of  late,  fail 
much  in  appearing  at  musters,  submitting  to  the  trifling 
fine  of  five  shillings,  which  they  argue  they  can  afford 
to  pay,  by  earning  more  at  home;  but  I  have  reason  to 
fear,  through  disaffection.     With  such  a  set  of  men,  it 

e  e 


218  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

is  impossible  to  render  any  service  to  country  or  comity. 
A  few  days  since,  hearing  of  the  ravages  committed  by 
Philips  and  his  notorious  gang,  I  ordered  fifty  men  to 
be  raised  out  of  four  companies,  consisting  of  upwards 
of  two  hundred:  of  those  only  ten  appeared,  and  it 
being  at  a  private  muster,  I  compelled  twenty  others 
into  duty,  putting  them  under  the  command  of  capt. 
Josiah  Wilson,  who  immediately  marched  after  the 
insurgents;  and  that  very  night  one  fourth  of  his  men 
deserted.  Capt.  Wilson  still  pursued,  but  to  no  pur- 
pose: they  were  either  taken  to  their  secret  places  in 
the  swamp,  or  concealed  by  their  friends,  that  no  intel- 
ligence could  be  obtained.  He  then  returned,  his  men 
declaring  they  could  stay  no  longer,  on  account  of 
their  crops.  I  considered,  therefore,  that  rather  than 
that  they  should  wholly  desert,  it  might  be  better  to  dis- 
charge them,  and  wait  the  coming  of  the  Nansemond 
militia,  when  I  trusted  something  might  be  done:  but  of 
those  men  I  can  hear  no  tidings ;  and  unless  they  or  some 
other  better  men  do  come,  it  will  be  out  of  my  power 
to  effect  any  thing  with  the  militia  of  this  county;  for 
such  is  their  cowardly  disposition,  joined  to  their  disaf- 
fection, that  scarce  a  man  without  being  forced,  can 
be  raised  to  go  after  the  outlyers.  We  have  lost  capt. 
Wilson,  since  his  return:  having  some  private  business 
at  a  neighbour's  within  a  mile  of 'his  own  house,  he 
was  fired  on  by  four  men  concealed  in  the  house,  and 
wounded  in  such  a  manner,  that  he  died  in  a  few  hours; 
and  this  will  surely  be  the  fate  of  a  few  others,  if  their 
request  of  the  removal  of  the  relations  and  friends  of 
those  villains  be  not  granted,  which  I  am  again  pressed 
to  solicit  for,  and  in  which  case  neither  assistance,  pay, 
or  plunder,  is  expected;  conceiving  that  to  distress  their 
supporters,  is  the  only  means  by  which  we  can  root 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  219 

those  wretches  from  us,  and  thereby  establish  peace 
and  security  to  ourselves  and  families.  I  am,  with  great 
respect,  honourable  sir,  your  most  obedient  humble 
servant, 

"  John  Wilson/' 

"  May  24. 

"  A  company  of  about  50  men  are  now  come  from 
Nansemond;  but  I  am  informed  by  the  captain,  that 
they  will  not  be  kept  above  two  days,  five  having  de- 
serted already. 

"  Jno.  Wilson." 

The  governor  immediately  enclosed  this  letter  to 
the  house  of  delegates,  with  the  following  communica- 
tion: 

"  The  honourable  Benjamin  Harrison,  esq.  speaker  of 
the  house  of  delegates. 

"  Williamsburg-,  May  27, 1778. 

"  Sir, 

"  I  was  always  unwilling  to  trouble  the  general 
assembly  with  any  thing  that  seemed  of  too  little  conse- 
quence for  their  deliberation.  In  that  view,  I  have  for 
some  time,  considered  the  insurrection  in  Princess 
Anne  and  Norfolk.  I  have  from  time  to  time,  given 
orders  to  the  commanding  officers  of  those  counties,  to 
draw  from  the  militia  a  force  sufficient  to  quell  it. 
These  officers  have  often  complained  of  the  difficulty 
of  the  business,  arising  partly  from  the  local  circum- 
stances attending  it,  but  chiefly  from  the  backwardness 
and  even  disaffection  of  the  people.  In  order  to  remove 
the  latter  obstacle,  I  gave  orders  for  one  hundred  men 


220  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

to  be  drawn  out  into  this  service,  from  Nansemond 
county;  but  I  am  sorry  to  say,  the  almost  total  want  of 
discipline  in  that  and  too  many  other  militias  in  the 
state,  seems  to  forbid  the  hope  of  their  doing  much  to 
effect. 

"  Col.  Wilson,  whose  letter  I  inclose,  has  several 
times  given  me  to  understand,  that  in  his  opinion,  the 
removal  of  such  families  as  are  in  league  with  the 
insurgents,  was  a  step  absolutely  necessary,  and  has 
desired  me  to  give  orders  accordingly.  But  thinking 
that  the  executive  power  is  not  competent  to  such  a 
purpose,  I  must  beg  leave  to  submit  the  whole  matter 
to  the  assembly,  who  are  the  only  judges  how  far  the 
methods  of  proceeding  directed  by  law  are  to  be  dis- 
pensed with  on  this  occasion. 

"A  company  of  regulars  drawn  from  the  several 
stations,  will  be  ordered  to  co-operate  with  the  militia, 
though  indeed  their  scanty  numbers  will  not  permit  it 
to  be  done  without  hazard.  But  I  cannot  help  think- 
ing this  ought  to  be  encountered;  for  an  apparent  dispo- 
sition to  disturb  the  peace  of  this  state  has  been  mani- 
fested by  these  people  during  the  whole  course  of  the 
present  war.  It  seems,  therefore,  that  no  effort  to  crush 
these  desperadoes  should  be  spared. 

My  duty  would  no  longer  suffer  me  to  withhold  these 
several  (matters  from  the  view  of  the  general  assembly, 
to  whom  I  beg  leave  to  refer  them  through  you.  With 
great  regard,  I  have  the  honour  to  be,  sir,  your  most 
obedient  humble  servant, 

"P.  Henry." 

This  letter  was  communicated  to  the  house  on  the  day 
of  its  date,  and  was  immediately  referred  to  a  committee 
of  the  whole  house,  on  the  state  of  the  commonwealth. 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  221 

That  committee  was  immediately  formed;  but  not  hav- 
ing time  to  go  through  the  subject,  had  leave  to  sit  again. 
On  the  next  day  the  house  again  resolved  itself  into  a 
committee  of  the  whole,  and  after  some  time  spent  there- 
in, the  speaker  resumed  the  chair,  and  Mr.  Carter  re- 
ported on  the  subject  of  Philips,  as  follows: 

"  Information  being  received,  that  a  certain 
Philips,  with  divers  others  his  associates  and  confede- 
rates, have  levied  war  against  this  commonwealth, 
within  the  counties  of  Norfolk  and  Princess  Anne,  com- 
mitting murders,  burning  houses,  wasting  farms,  and 
doing  other  acts  of  enormity,  in  defiance  of  the  officers 
of  justice, 

"  Resolved,  That  it  is  the  opinion  of  this  committee, 
that  if  the  said  Philips,  his  associates  and  con- 

federates, do  not  render  themselves  to  some  officer, 
civil  or  military,  within  this  commonwealth,  on  or  be- 
fore day  of  June  in  this  present  year,  such  of  them 
as  fail  so  to  do,  ought  to  be  attainted  of  high  treason ; 
and  that  in  the  mean  time,  and  before  such  render,  it 
shall  be  lawful  for  any  person,  with  or  without  orders, 
to  pursue  and  slay,  or  otherwise  to  take  and  deliver  to 
justice  the  said  Philips,  his  associates  and  con- 

federates." 

Mr.  Jefferson,  Mr.  Smith,  and  Mr.  Tyler,  were  the 
committee  appointed  to  prepare  and  bring  in  a  bill, 
pursuant  to  this  resolution,  which  was  reported  on  the 
same  day,  and  read  the  first  time.  On  the  two  succeed- 
ing days,  it  was  read  a  second  md third  time;  and,  thus, 
regularly  passed  through  the  forms  of  the  lower  house. 
It  was  communicated  to  the  senate  by  Mr.  Jefferson  on 
the  30th  day  of  the  month,   and  returned,  passed  by 


222  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

them  without  amendment,  on  the  first  day  of  June, 
which  was  the  last  day  of  the  session.  The  act,  as 
it  stands  upon  the  statute  book  of  the  session,  is  as 
follows: 

"  An  act  to  attaint  Josiah  Philips  and  others,  unless 
they  render  themselves  to  justice,  within  a  certain 
time. 

"  Whereas  a  certain  Josiah  Philips,  labourer,  of  the 
parish  of  Lynhaven  and  county  of  Princess  Anne, 
together  with  divers  others,  inhabitants  of  the  counties 
of  Princess  Anne  and  Norfolk,  and  citizens  of  this 
commonwealth,  contrary  to  their  fidelity,  associating 
and  confederating  together,  have  levied  war  against 
this  commonwealth,  within  the  same,  committing  mur- 
ders, burning  houses,  wasting  farms,  and  doing  other 
acts  of  hostility  in  the  said  counties  of  Princess  Anne 
and  Norfolk,  and  still  continue  to  exercise  the  same 
enormities  on  the  good  people  of  this  commonwealth; 
and,  whereas,  the  delays  which  would  attend  the  pro- 
ceeding to  outlaw  the  said  offenders,  according  to  the 
usual  forms  and  procedures  of  the  courts  of  law,  would 
leave  the  said  good  people,  for  a  long  time,  exposed  to 
murder  and  devastation: 

"Be  it,  therefore,  enacted  by  the '  general  assembly, 
That  if  the  said  Josiah  Philips,  his  associates  and  con- 
federates, shall  not,  on  or  before  the  last  day  of  June  in 
the  present  year,  render  themselves  to  the  governor,  or 
to  some  member  of  the  privy  council,  judge  of  the 
general  court,  justice  of  the  peace,  or  commissioned 
officer  of  the  regular  troops,  navy,  or  militia  of  this  com- 
monwealth, in  order  to  their  trials  for  the  treasons, 
murders,  and  other  felonies  by  them  committed,  that, 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  223 

then,  such  of  them,  the  said  Josiah  Philips,  his  asso- 
ciates and  confederates,  as  shall  not  so  render  him  or 
themselves,  shall  stand  and  be  convicted  and  attainted 
of  high  treason,  and  shall  suffer  the  pains  of  death,  and 
incur  all  forfeitures,  penalties,  and  disabilities,  prescrib- 
ed by  the  law,  against  those  convicted  and  attainted  of 
high  treason;  and  that  execution  of  this  sentence  of 
attainder  shall  be  done,  by  order  of  the  general  court, 
to  be  entered  so  soon  as  may  be  conveniently,  after 
notice  that  any  of  the  said  offenders  are  in  custody 
of  the  keeper  of  the  public  jail.  And  if  any  person 
committed  to  the  custody  of  the  keeper  of  the  public 
jail,  as  an  associate  or  confederate  of  the  said  Josiah 
Philips,  shall  allege  that  he  hath  not  been  of  his  asso- 
ciates or  confederates,  at  any  time  after  the  first  day  of 
July,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  seven  hun- 
dred and  seventy-seven,  at  which  time  the  said  murders 
and  devastations  were  begun,  a  petit  jury  shall  be  sum- 
moned and  charged,  according  to  the  forms  of  the  law, 
to  try,  in  the  presence  of  the  said  court,  the  fact  so 
alleged;  and  if  it  be  found  against  the  defendant 
execution  of  this  act  shall  be  done  as  before  di- 
rected. 

£  And  that  the  good  people  of  this  commonwealth 
may  not  in  the  mean  time,  be  subject  to  the  unrestrain- 
ed hostilities  of  the  said  insurgents:  Be  it  further 
enacted,  that  from  and  after  the  passing  of  this  act,  it 
shall  be  lawful  for  any  person,  with  or  without  orders, 
to  pursue  and  slay  the  said  Josiah  Philips,  and  any 
others  who  have  been  of  his  associates  or  confederates, 
at  any  time  after  the  said  first  day  of  July  aforesaid, 
and  shall  not  have  previously  rendered  him  or  them- 
selves to  any  of  the  officers,  civil  or  military,  before 
described,  or  otherwise  to  take  and  deliver  them  to 


224  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

justice,  to  be  dealt  with  according  to  law.  Provided,  that 
the  person  so  slain,  be  in  arms  at  the  time,  or  endeavour- 
ing to  escape  being  taken." 

Philips  was  apprehended  in  the  course  of  the  autumn, 
and  indicted  by  Mr.  Edmund  Randolph,  attorney  gene- 
ral, for  highway  robbery,  simply.  On  this  charge  lie 
was  tried  at  the  October  term  of  the  general  court, 
convicted  and  executed:  so  that  the  act  of  attainder  was 
never  brought  to  bear  upon  him  at  all.  This  is  the 
whole  case  of  Josiah  Philips.  The  reader  will  judge 
whether  Mr.  Henry  deserves  censure  for  having 
communicated  to  the  legislature  the  letter  of  colonel 
Wilson;  or  whether  that  body  acted  with  too  much 
severity  towards  a  wretch,  who  had  not  only  set  the  laws 
of  his  country  at  defiance,  but  was  waging  a  cruel  and 
dastardly  war  upon  men  without  arms,  upon  women 
and' children;  and  acting,  not  the  part  of  a  brave  and 
open  enemy,  but  that  of  an  enemy  of  the  human 
family. 

Just  at  the  close  of  Mr.  Henry's  administration, 
Virginia  suffered  an  invasion  of  a  few  days  under  the 
British  officers,  Collin  and  Matthew.  They  seized 
Fort  Nelson  near  Norfolk,  destroyed  the  naval  stores 
at  Gosport,  burnt  Suffolk,  and  disappeared,  before  the 
militia  could  be  rallied  to  chastise  their  insolence.  This 
occurred  in  the  month  of  May  1779;  and  the  facility 
and  impunity  with  which  the  enterprise  was  accom- 
plished, very  probably  suggested  the  more  serious  inva- 
sion of  the  state,  which  afterwards  took  place  under  the 
traitor  Arnold. 

It  would  seem,  that  a  wish  was  entertained  to  re-elect 
Mr.  Henry  to  the  office  of  governor  a  fourth  time, 
although  the  constitution  declared  him  ineligible  after 


XIFE  OF  HENRY.  225 

the  third  year.  The  impression  seems  to  have  been 
that  his  appointment  for  the  first  year,  not  having  been 
made  by  delegates  who  had  themselves  been  elected 
under  the  constitution,  ought  not  to  be  counted  as  one 
of  the  constitutional  years  of  service.  Mr.  Henry, 
however,  had  too  scrupulous  a  respect  for  that  instru- 
ment to  accept  the  office,  even  in  a  doubtful  case; 
and  therefore,  addressed  the  following  letter  to  the 
speaker: 

"  May  28th,  1779. 

«:  Sir, 

"  The  term  for  which  I  had  the  honour  to  be 
elected  governor  by  the  late  assembly,  being  just  about 
to  expire,  and  the  constitution,  as  I  think,  making  me 
ineligible  to  that  office,  I  take  the  liberty  to  communi- 
cate to  the  assembly  through  you,  sir,  my  intention  to 
retire  in  four  or  five  days. 

"  I  have  thought  it  necessary  to  give  this  notification 
of  my  design,  in  order  that  the  assembly  may  have  the 
earliest  opportunity  of  deliberating  upon  the  choice  of  a 
successor  to  me  in  office. 

"  With  great  regard,  I  have  the  honour  to  be,  sir. 
your  most  obedient  servant, 

"  P.  Henry. " 

Thus  closed  Mr.  Henry's  administration:  and  al- 
though he  had  not  had  an  opportunity  of  distinguishing 
it  by  any  splendid  achievement,  it  is  honour  enough  that 
he  had  given  universal  satisfaction,  and  that  he  retired 
with  a  popularity  confirmed  and  increased. 

It  has  been  thought  best  not  to  break  the  chain  of  the 
narrative  as  to  his  public  character,  by  noticing  the 
changes  which  had  before  this  time  occurred  in  his 

p-f 


22(5  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

domestic  relations.     It  may  be  proper  to  pause  here 
for  the  purpose  of  supplying  this  omission. 

His  wife,  the  partner  of  his  youth,  and  the  solace  of 
his  early  adversities,  had  died  in  the  year  1775,  after 
having  made  him  the  father  of  six  children.  The  an- 
guish of  this  blow  was  mitigated  by  the  circumstance, 
of  her  having  been  for  several  years,  in  a  state  of  ill 
health  and  of  suffering,  from  which  there  was  no  hope 
of  recovery;  and  to  her,  therefore,  death  indeed,  "  came 
like  a  friend  to  relieve  her  from  pain." 

Neither  had  the  father  lived  to  witness  the  promotion 
of  his  son,  to  the  highest  honours  of  the  republic.  He 
had  lived,  however,  long  enough  to  enjoy  the  first  bloom 
of  his  fame,  and  to  see  him  the  most  celebrated  and 
rising  character  in  the  state.  He  had  died  about  the 
year  1770,  and  left  behind  him  a  name  highly  respecta- 
ble for  every  private  and  social  virtue. 

His  uncle,  for  whom  he  seems  to  have  had  a  strong 
affection,  had  died  during  his  government,  and  in  token 
of  his  affection  and  respect,  had  appointed  him  the  exe- 
cutor of  his  will. 

His  tender  and  indulgent  mother  still  survived,  and 
felt  all  that  pure  and  exquisite  delight,  which  the  well 
deserved  honours  of  her  son  were  calculated  to  in- 
spire. 

After  the  death  of  his  wife,  Mr.  Henry  sold  the  farm 
called  Scotch  Town,  on  which  he  had  resided  in  Ha- 
nover, and  purchased  eight  or  ten  thousand  acres  of 
valuable  land  in  the  county  of  Henry;  a  county  which 
had  been  erected  during  his  government,  and  which 
had  taken  its  name  from  him,  as  did  afterwards,  its 
neighbouring  county  of  Patrick.  In  the  year  1777, 
he  intermarried  with  Dorothea,  the  daughter  of  Mr. 
Nathaniel  W.  Dandridge,  with  whom,  after  the  resig- 


LIFE    OP    HENRY.  221 

nation  or  expiration  of  his  office,  he  removed  to  his 
newly  acquired  estate  called  Leatherwood,  and  there 
resumed  the  practice  of  the  law.  In  the  year  1 780,  we 
find  him  again  in  the  assembly,  and  one  of  the  most 
active  members  in  the  house. 

During  the  winter  session  of  this  year,  general  Gates 
entered  the  city  of  Richmond  from  his  southern  cam- 
paign, where  he  had  most  wofully  fulfilled  general 
Lee's  prediction .*  His  total  defeat  at  Camden,  and  a 
series  of  subsequent  ill  fortune,  had  left  South  Carolina 
completely  in  the  hands  of  the  victorious  British;  and  to 
increase  his  humiliation,  congress  had  not  only  super- 
seded him  in  that  command,  by  the  substitution  of 
general  Greene,  but  had  passed  a  resolution  requiring 
the  commander  in  chief  to  order  a  court  of  inquiry  on 
his  conduct.  Under  these  accumulated  disgraces,  the 
unfortunate  general  entered  the  city  of  Richmond;  when 
Mr.  Henry  moved  a  resolution,  which  displays  in  a  most 
engaging  light,  the  delicate  and  generous  sensibility  of 
his  character:  it  was  as  follows: 

"  Resolved,  That  a  committee  of  four  be  appointed 
to  wait  on  major  general  Gates,  and  to  assure  him  of 
the  high  regard  and  esteem  of  this  house;  that  the 
remembrance  of  his  former  glorious  services  cannot  be 
obliterated  by  any  reverse  of  fortune;  but  that  this 
house,  ever  mindful  of  his  great  merit,  will  omit  no 
opportunity  of  testifying  to  the  world,  the  gratitude 
which,  as  a  member  of  the  American  union,  this  country 
owes  to  him,  in  his  military  character/' 

The  author  may  be  permitted  to  say  of  a  state,  which 

*  When  general  Charles  Lee  heard  of  general  Gates'  appointment  to  the 
command  of  the  southern  army,  he  foretold  "  that  his  north  m  laurels  would 
be  turned  into  southern  -wiQoiea" 


22H  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

is  his  only  by  adoption,  that  to  those  who  know  the 
character  of  Virginians,  it  would  be  unnecessary  to  add, 
that  this  generous  resolution  passed  unanimously.  The 
committee  appointed  to  communicate  it  to  the  general, 
were  Mr.  Henry,  Mr.  Richard  H.  Lee,  Mr.  Zane,  and 
general  Nelson.  We  may  be  assured,  that  a  committee, 
chosen  with  so  much  judgment,*  discharged  their  duty 
in  a  manner  the  most  grateful  to  the  wounded  feelings 
of  the  general;  and  on  the  next  day  Mr.  Henry  re- 
ported the  following  answer,  which  was  spread  upon 
the  journal: 

"  Richmond,  December  28th,  1780. 

"  Sir, 

u  I  shall  ever  remember,  with  the  utmost  gratitude, 
the  high  honour  this  day  done  me,  by  the  honourable 
the  house  of  delegates  of  Virginia.  When  engaged  in 
the  noble  cause  of  freedom  and  the  United  States,  I 
devoted  myself  entirely  to  the  service  of  obtaining  the 
great  end  of  their  union.  That  I  have  been  once  un- 
fortunate, is  my  great  mortification:  but,  let  the  event 
of  my  future  services  be  what  they  may,  they  will,  as 
they  always  have  been,  be  directed  by  the  most  faithful 
integrity,  and  animated  by  the  truest  zeal  for  the  honour 
and  interest  of  the  United  States. 

"  Horatio  Gates." 

The  spring  and  summer  of  the  next  year  presented  a 
period  of  even  deeper  darkness,  than  the  autumn  of 

*  Mr.  Henry  the  mover,  had  recently  closed  his  administration  with  ho- 
nour, as  the  first  republican  governor  of  Virginia,  and  was  the  most  consider- 
able man  in  the  commonwealth ;  Mr.  Lee  was  a  member  of  the  congress, 
whose  vote  we  have  just  mentioned ;  Mr.  Zane  represented  the  county  in 
which  general  Gates  lived  ;  and  general  Nelson  was  the  most  popular  mili- 
tarv  character  in  the  state. 


LIFE    OF    HENRY.  229 

1776.  Virginia  had  not  hitherto,  been  the  theatre  of 
hostile  operations  of  a  very  serious  character  ;  her 
sufferings  had  been  rather  those  of  sympathy  with  her 
northern  and  southern  sisters;  but  in  this  year,  the  cala- 
mities of  war  were  brought  home  to  her  own  bosom. 
Arnold's  invasion  took  place  in  January:  having  carried 
his  ravages  as  high  up  as  Richmond  and  Westham,  he 
retired  to  Portsmouth,  where  he  rested  till  April,  when 
general  Philips  succeeded  to  the  command,  and  paid 
another  visit  of  desolation  to  Manchester.  In  the  next 
month,  came  lord  Cornwallis,  with  his  victorious  army 
from  the  south,  driving  every  thing  before  him,  and 
striking  terror  into  whatsoever  quarter  he  approached. 
Having  formed  a  junction  between  his  forces  and  those 
under  the  command  of  general  Philips,  there  was  no 
longer  a  military  force  in  the  state  which  had  the  power 
to  resist  him.  The  inferior  body  of  republican  troops, 
under  the  marquis  la  Fayette,  moved  before  him,  with- 
out the  ability  to  strike  a  blow;  and  Cornwallis  roamed 
at  pleasure,  and  without  any  apprehension,  through  the 
interior  of  the  state. 

The  seventh  of  May  was  the  day  appointed  by  law 
for  the  meeting  of  the  assembly  at  Richmond.  A  few 
members  met  and  took  the  oaths  prescribed  by  law;  but 
the  number  not  being  sufficient  to  proceed  to  business, 
the  house  was  adjourned  from  day  to  day  until  the  10th; 
when,  upon  information  of  the  approach  of  the  enemy, 
they  adjourned  to  the  24th,  to  meet  at  Charlottesville. 
It  was  not  until  the  28th,  that  a  house  was  formed  to 
proceed  to  business  at  this  place;  when  Mr.  Benjamin 
Harrison  was  elected  speaker,  and  after  making  the 
usual  acknowledgments  for  that  honour,  proceeded  to 
address  the  following  remarks  to  the  house;  which  I 
quote,  not  because  they  are  a  very  favourable  specimen 


230  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

of  Mr.  Harrison's  oratory,  but  to  show  the  panic  which 
prevailed  even  among  the  first  men  of  the  country. — 
"  The  critical  and  dangerous  situation  of  our  country 
leads  me  to  hope,  that  my  recommending  it  to  you  to 
despatch  the  weighty  matters  that  will  be  under  your 
consideration,  ivith  all  convenient  speed,  will  not  be 
taken  amiss:  the  people  expect  that  effectual  and  deci- 
sive measures  will  be  taken  to  rid  them  of  an  impla- 
cable enemy,  that  are  now  roaming  at  large  in  the  very 
bowels  of  our  country,  and  I  have  no  doubt  of  your 
answering  their  expectations;  the  mode  of  doing  this 
may  indeed  be  difficult;  but  it  not  being  my  province  to 
point  it  out,  I  shall  leave  it  to  your  wisdom,  in  full  con- 
fidence that  every  thing  that  is  necessary  for  quieting 
the  minds  and  dispelling  the  fears  of  our  constituents, 
will  be  done." 

Eight  days  after  this  address,  Mr.  John  Jouett,  a 
citizen  of  the  place,  entered  the  town  on  horseback,  at 
full  speed,  and  announced  the  near  and  rapid  approach 
of  Tarlton,  at  the  head  of  three  hundred  cavalry  and 
mounted  infantry.  The  house  had  just  met,  and  was 
about  to  commence  business,  when  the  alarming  cry  of 
"  Tarlton  and  the  British/'  was  spread  through  the 
village;  and  they  had  scarcely  taken  time  to  adjourn 
informally  to  Staunton,  when  Tarlton  rushed  like 
a  thunderbolt  into  the  village,  in  the  confident  expecta- 
tion of  seizing  the  whole  assembly:  but  the  birds  had 
flown.  He  made  seven  of  them  only  prisoners.  The 
rest  re-assembled  in  Stauiuon,  on  the  7th  of  June.  On 
the  10th  of  June,  a  false  report  of  his  approach  pro- 
duced another  panic;  and  the  house  having  merely  taken 
time  to  resolve,  that  they  would  meet  at  the  Warm 
Springs,  if  it  should  be  found  dangerous  to  meet  in 
Staunton  on  the  next  day:  and  on  their  failure  so  to  do. 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  231 

that  the  speaker  might  call  a  meeting,  when  and  where 
he  pleased,  again  hroke  up  and  dispersed. 

It  was  at  this  period  of  almost  hopeless  darkness, 
when  the  energies  of  the  state  seemed  to  have  been 
pretty  nearly  paralized,  that  the  project  of  a  dictator  was 
again  revived;  and  it  is  again  highly  probable,  that  Mr. 
Henry  was  the  character  who  was  in  view  for  that 
office.  Inquiries  have  been  made  of  the  surviving  mem- 
bers of  that  assembly  to  ascertain  whether  the  project 
could  be  traced  to1  him,  or  whether  he  had  any  kind  of 
participation  in  the  proposal;  but  those  inquiries  have 
resulted  in  a  conviction  of  his  entire  innocence.  The 
project  came  from  other  quarters,  and  seems  to  have 
been  the  last  refuge  of  that  general  despair,  which, 
for  a  short  time,  pervaded  the  whole  commonwealth. 

But  this  period  of  deep  darkness  was  the  harbinger 
of  breaking  day.  The  morning  dawned  with  the  arrival 
of  those  aids  from  France,  which  Mr.  Henry  had  so  long 
ago  predicted;  and  the  sun  of  American  independence 
arose,  to  set  no  more.  He  lived  to  witness  the  glorious 
issue  of  that  revolution  which  his  genius  had  set  in  motion ; 
and  (to  repeat  his  own  prophetic  language,  before  the 
commencement  of  the  struggle)  "  to  see  America  take 
her  stand  among  the  nations  of  the  earth."  The  contest 
closed  with  the  capture  of  Cornwallis  at  Little  York,  on 
the  19th  of  October,  1781;  and  thus,  the  ball  ^  the 
revolution  rested  in  the  same  state  in  which  it  had  receiv- 
ed the  first  impulse. 

This  enlightened  and  patriotic  statesman,  however, 
was  not  yet  inclined  to  indulge  himself  in  that  repose  to 
which  he  was  so  well  entitled.  The  constitution  of  the 
state  had  as  yet  been  tried  only  in  war,  when  the  sense 
of  common  danger,  and  their  ardour  in  the  common 
cause,  might  of  themselves,  have  been  sufficient  to  keep 


232  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

the  people  together,  and  to  supply,  in  a  good  degree,  the 
place  of  government. 

It  was  necessary  to  see  how  the  instrument  would 
work  in  peace;  what  assurance  it  gave  of  public  order 
and  well  regulated  liberty;  or  whether  any,  and  what 
defects  in  the  plan,  required  amendment. 

There  were  other  considerations  too,  which  called 
loudly  for  attention.  The  war  had  left  the  country  in  a 
most  deplorable  situation:  poor  and  in  debt;  its  warriors 
unrequited;  its  finances  wholly  deranged;  its  jurispru- 
dence unsettled;  and  all  its  faculties  weak,  disordered 
and  exhausted.  This  was  no  time  for  the  patriot  to  quit 
his  post.  It  demanded  all  his  vigilance  to  guard  the 
infant  republic  against  the  machinations  of  its  enemies, 
both  abroad  and  at  home;  it  required  all  his  care  and 
all  his  skill  to  heal  the  numerous  disorders  which  had 
flowed  from  the  war;  to  nurse  the  new-born  nation  into 
health  and  strength;  to  develope  its  resources,  moral  and 
physical;  and  thus  to  give  security  and  permanence  to 
its  liberties. 

With  the  view  of  contributing  his  aid  to  those  great 
objects,  Mr.  Henry  still  continued  to  represent  the 
county  of  his  residence,  in  the  legislature  of  the  state, 
and  controuled  the  proceedings  of  that  body,  with  a 
weight  of  personal  authority,  and  a  power  of  eloquence, 
which  it  was  extremely  difficult,  and  indeed,  almost  im- 
possible to  resist.  A  striking  evidence  of  this  power 
was  given,  immediately  on  the  close  of  the  revolution,  in 
his  advocating  the  return  of  the  British  refugees.  The 
measure  was  most  vehemently  opposed.  There  was  no 
class  of  human  beings  against  whom  such  violent  and 
deep-rooted  prejudices  existed.  The  name  of  "  British 
tory,"  was  of  itself,  enough,  at  that  period,  to  throw 
almost  any  company  in  Virginia  into  flames,  and  was 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  233 

pretty  generally  a  signal  for  a  coat  of  tar  and  feathers; 
a  signal  which  was  not  very  often  disobeyed.     Mr. 
Henry's  proposition  in  favour  of  a  class  of  people  so 
odious,  could  not  fail  to  excite  the  strongest  surprise; 
and  was,  at  first,  received  with  a  repugnance  apparently 
insuperable.  The  late  judge  Tyler,  then  the  speaker  of 
the  house,  opposed  it  in  the  committee  of  the  whole,  with 
great  warmth;  and  in  the  course  of  the  discussion,  turn- 
ing from  the  chairman  to  Mr.  Henry,  he  asked  him, 
"  how  he,  above  all  other  men,  could  think  of  inviting 
into  his  family,  an  enemy,  from  whose  insults  and  inju- 
ries he  had  suffered  so  severely?"    To  this  Mr.  Henry 
answered,  "that  the  personal  feelings  of  a  politician, 
ought  not  to  be  permitted  to  enter  those  walls.     The 
question  (he  said)  was  a  national  one,  and  in  deciding  it, 
if  they  acted  wisely,  nothing  would  be  regarded  but  the 
interest  of  the  nation.     On  the  altar  of  his  country's 
good,  he  was  willing  to  sacrifice  all  personal  resentments, 
all  private  wrongs — and  he  flattered  himself,  that  he 
was  not  the  only  man  in  the  house,  who  was  capable  of 
making  such  a  sacrifice.     We  have,  sir,  (said  he)  an 
extensive  country,  without  population — what  can  be  a 
more  obvious  policy  than  that  this  country  ought  to  be 
peopled? — people,  sir,  form  the  strength  and  constitute 
the  wealth  of  a  nation.     I  want  to  see  our  vast  forests 
filled  up,  by  some  process  a  little  more  speedy  than  the 
ordinary  course  of  nature.     I  wish  to  see  these  states 
rapidly  ascending  to  that  rank  which   their  natural 
advantages  authorize  them  to  hold  among  the  nations 
of  the  earth.     Cast  your  eyes,  sir,  over  this  extensive 
country — observe  the   salubrity  of  your  climate;  the 
variety  and  fertility  of  your  soil — and  see  that  soil  inter- 
sected in  every  quarter,  by  bold  navigable  streams,  flow- 

Gg 


£34  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

ing  to  the  east  and  to  the  west,  as  if  the  finger  of  Heaven 
were  marking  out  the  course  of  your  settlements,  invit- 
ing you  to  enterprise,  and  pointing  the  way  to  wealth. 
Sir,  you  are  destined,  at  some  time  or  other,  to  become 
a  great  agricultural  and  commercial  people;  the  only 
question  is,  whether  you  choose  to  reach  this  point,  by 
slow  gradations,  and  at  some  distant  period — lingering 
on,  through  a  long  and  sickly  minority — subjected, 
meanwhile,  to  the  machinations,  insults  and  oppressions 
of  enemies  foreign  and  domestic,  without  sufficient 
strength  to  resist  and  chastise  them — or  whether  you 
choose  rather  to  rush,  at  once,  as  it  were,  to  the  full 
enjoyment  of  those  high  destinies,  and  be  able  to  cope, 
single-handed,  with  the  proudest  oppressor  of  the  old 
world.  If  you  prefer  the  latter  course,  as  I  trust  you 
do,  encourage  emigration — encourage  the  husband- 
men, the  mechanics,  the  merchants  of  the  old  world  to 
come  and  settle  in  this  land  of  promise — make  it  the 
home  of  the  skilful,  the  industrious,  the  fortunate  and 
happy,  as  well  as  the  asylum  of  the  distressed — fill  up 
the  measure  of  your  population  as  speedily  as  you  can, 
by  the  means  which  Heaven  hath  placed  in  your 
power — and  I  venture  to  prophecy  there  are  those  now 
living,  who  will  see  this  favoured  land  amongst  the  most 
powerful  on  earth — able,  sir,  to  take  care  of  herself, 
without  resorting  to  that  policy  which  is  always  so  dan- 
gerous, though  sometimes  unavoidable,  of  calling  in 
foreign  aid.  Yes,  sir- — they  will  see  her  great  in  arts 
and  in  arms — her  golden  harvests  waving  over  fields  of 
immeasurable  extent-— her  commerce  penetrating  the 
most  distant  seas,  and  her  cannon  silencing  the  vain 
boasts  of  those,  who  now  proudly  affect  to  rule  the  waves. 
But,  sir,  you  must  have  men — you  cannot  get  along 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  .  235 

without  them — those  heavy  forests  of  valuable  timber, 
under  which  your  lands  are  groaning,  must  be  cleared 
away — those  vast  riches  which  cover  the  face  of  your 
soil,  as  well  as  those  which  lie  hid  in  its  bosom,  are  to 
be  developed  and  gathered  only  by  the  skill  and  enter- 
prise of  men — your  timber  sir,  must  be  worked  up  into 
ships  to  transport  the  productions  of  the  soil,  from 
which  it  has  been  cleared — then,  you  must  have  com- 
mercial men  and  commercial  capital,  to  take  off  your 
productions  and  find  the  best  markets  for  them  abroad 
— your  great  want  sir,  is  the  want  of  men  g  and  these 
you  must  have,  and  will  have  speedily,  if  you  are  wise. 
Do  you  ask  how  you  are  to  get  them? — Open  your 
doors,  sir,  and  they  will  come  in — the  population  of  the 
old  world  is  full  to  overflowing — that  population  is 
ground  too,  by  the  oppressions  of  the  governments  under 
which  they  live.  Sir,  they  are  already  standing  on  tip- 
toe upon  their  native  shores,  and  looking  to  your  coasts, 
with  a  wishful  and  longing  eye — they  see  here,  a  land 
blessed  with  natural  and  political  advantages,  which  are 
not  equalled  by  those  of  any  other  country  upon  earth 
— a  land  on  which  a  gracious  Providence  hath  emptied 
the  horn  of  abundance — a  land  over  which  Peace  hath 
now  stretched  forth  her  white  wings,  and  where  Content 
and  Plenty  lie  down  at  every  door  !  Sir,  they  see  some- 
thing still  more  attractive  than  all  this — they  see  a  land 
in  which  Liberty  hath  taken  up  her  abode — that  Liberty, 
whom  they  had  considered  as  a  fabled  goddess,  existing 
only  in  the  fancies  of  poets — they  see  her  here,  a  real 
divinity — her  altars  rising  on  every  hand,  throughout 
these  happy  states — her  glories  chaunted  by  three  mil- 
lions of  tongues — and  the  whole  region  smiling  under 
her  blessed  influence.     Sir,  let  but  this  our  celestial 


236  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

goddess,  Liberty,  stretch  forth  her  fair  hand  towards 
the  people  of  the  old  world — tell  them  to  come,  and  bid 
them  welcome — and  you  will  see  them  pouring  in  from 
the  north — from  the  south — from  the  east,  and  from 
the  west — your  wildernesses  will  be  cleared  and  settled 
— your  deserts  will  smile — your  ranks  will  be  filled — 
and  you  will  soon  be  in  a  condition  to  defy  the  powers 
of  any  adversary. 

"  But  gentlemen  object  to  any  accession  from  Great 
Britain — and  particularly  to  the  return  of  the  British 
refugees.  Sir,  I  feel  no  objection  to  the  return  of  those 
deluded  people — they  have  to  be  sure,  mistaken  their 
own  interests  most  wofully,  and  most  wofully  have  they 
suffered  the  punishment  due  to  their  offences.  But  the 
relations  which  we  bear  to  them  and  to  their  native 
country,  are  now  changed— -their  king  hath  acknow- 
ledged our  independence — the  quarrel  is  over — peace 
hath  returned,  and  found  us  a  free  people.  Let 
us  have  the  magnanimity,  sir,  to  lay  aside  our  antipa- 
thies and  prejudices,  and  consider  the  subject  in  a 
political  light — those  are  an  enterprising  monied  people 
— they  will  be  serviceable  in  taking  off  the  surplus  pro- 
duce of  our  lands,  and  supplying  us  with  necessaries, 
during  the  infant  state  of  our  manufactures.  Even  if 
they  be  inimical  to  us  in  point  of  feeling  and  principle, 
I  can  see  no  objection,  in  a  political  view,  in  making 
them  tributary  to  our  advantage.  And  as  I  have  no 
prejudices  to  prevent  my  making  this  use  of  them,  so 
sir,  I  have  no  fear  of  any  mischief  that  they  can  do  us. 
Afraid  of  them! — what,  sir,  (said  he,  rising  to  one  of  his 
loftiest  attitudes,  and  assuming  a  look  of  the  most  indig- 
nant and  sovereign  contempt,)  shall  ive,  who  have  laid 
the  proud  British  lion  at  our  feet,  now  be  afraid  of  his 
whelps?" 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  237 

The  force  of  this  figure,  and  the  energy  with  which 
it  was  brought  out,  are  said  to  have  produced  an  effect, 
that  made  the  house  start  simultaneously.  It  continued 
to  be  admired,  long  after  the  occasion  which  gave  it 
birth  had  passed  away,  and  was  frequently  quoted  by 
Mr.  Wythe  to  his  students,  while  professor  of  law  at 
William  and  Mary  College,  as  a  happy  specimen  of 
those  valuable  figures,  which  unite  the  beauty  of  deco- 
ration with  the  effect  of  argument. 

The  gentleman  to  whom  I  am  indebted  for  the  pre- 
ceding incident,*  has  favoured  me  also  with  the  follow- 
ing one,  which  I  shall  give  in  his  own  words: — "  Mr. 
Henry  espoused  the  measure  which  took  off  the  re- 
straints on  British  commerce,  before  any  treaty  was 
entered  into;  in  which  I  opposed  him  on  this  ground, 
that  that  measure  would  expel  from  this  country 
the  trade  of  every  other  nation,  on  account  of  our 
habits,  language,  and  the  manner  of  conducting  busi- 
ness on  credit  between  us  and  them:  also  on  this 
ground,  in  addition  to  the  above,  that  if  we  changed 
the  then  current  of  commerce,  we  should  drive  away 
all  competition,  and  never  perhaps  should  regain  it, 
(which  has  literally  happened.)  In  reply  to  these 
observations,  he  was  beyond  all  expression  eloquent  and 
sublime.  After  painting  the  distresses  of  the  people, 
struggling  through  a  perilous  war,  cut  off  from  com- 
merce so  long  that  they  were  naked  and  unclothed,  he 
concluded  with  a  figure,  or  rather  with  a  series  of 
figures,  which  I  shall  never  forget,  because,  beautiful 
as  they  were  in  themselves,  their  effect  was  heightened 
beyond  all  description,  by  the  manner  in  which  he  acted 


*  Judge  Tyler. 


238  SKETCHES    OF   THE 

what  he  spoke: — '  Why/  said  he,  f  should  we  fetter 
commerce?  If  a  man  is  in  chains,  he  droops  and  bows 
to  the  earth,  for  his  spirits  are  broken;  (looking  sor- 
rowfully at  his  feet)  but  let  him  twist  the  fetters  from 
his  legs,  and  he  will  stand  erect  (straightening  himself, 
and  assuming  a  look  of  proud  defiance).  Fetter  not 
commerce,  sir — let  her  be  as  free  as  air — she  will  range 
the  whole  creation,  and  return  on  the  wings  of  the  four 
winds  of  heaven,  to  bless  the  land  with  plenty.'" 

In  the  fall  session  of  1 784,  Mr.  Henry  proposed  and 
advocated  several  measures  which  deserve  particular 
mention;  one  of  them,  on  account  of  the  originality 
and  boldness  of  mind  from  which  it  proceeded;  and 
others,  because  they  have  sometimes  been  made  the 
subjects  of  censure  against  him.     The  first,  respects 
the  Indians.     Those  unfortunate  beings,  the  natural 
enemies  of  the  white  people,  whom  they  regarded  as 
lawless  intruders  into  a  country  set  apart  for  themselves 
by  the  Great  Spirit,  had  continued,  from  their  first 
landing,  to  harass  the  white  settlements,  and  hang  like 
a  pestilence  on  their  frontier,  as  it  advanced  itself  to- 
wards the  west.      The  story  of  their  accumulated 
wrongs,  handed  down  by  tradition  from  father  to  son, 
and  emblazoned  with  all  the  colours  of  Indian  oratory, 
had  kept  their  war  fires  smoking  from  age  to  age,  and 
the  hatchet  and  scalping  knife  perpetually  bright.  They 
had  long  since  abandoned  the  hope  of  being  able  by 
their  single  strength,  to  exterminate  the  usurpers  of 
their  soil;  but  either  from  the  spirit  of  habitual  and 
deadly  revenge,  or  from  the  policy  of  checking  as  far 
as  they  could,  the  perpetually  extending  encroachments 
of  the  white  men,  they  had  waged  an  unremitting  war 
upon  their  borders,  marked  with  horrors  which  eclipse 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  239 

the  wildest  fictions  of  the  legendary  tale  *  These  peo- 
ple, too,  besides  the  mischiefs  to  which  they  were 
prompted  by  their  own  feelings  and  habits,  were  an  ever 
ready  and  a  most  terrific  scourge,  in  the  hands  of  any 
enemy  with  whom  this  country  might  be  at  variance. 
Dunmore,  although  thanked  at  the  time  for  his  services, 
was  afterwards  believed  by  the  house  of  burgesses,  to 
have  made  use  of  them  in  the  years  1774-5,  in  order  to 
draw  off  the  attention  of  the  colonists  from  the  usurpa- 
tion of  the  British  court:  and,  in  the  recent  war  of  the 
revolution,  that  merciless  enemy  had  been  again  let 
loose  upon  our  frontier,  with  all  the  terrors  of  savage 
warfare.  The  return  of  peace  with  Britain  had  given 
us  but  a  short  respite  from  their  hostilities.  I  perceive 
by  the  journal  of  the  house  of  delegates,  that  on  the  5th 
of  November,  1784,  it  was,  on  the  motion  of  Mr. 
Henry, 

"  Resolved,  That  the  governor,  with  the  advice  of 
council,  be  requested  to  adopt  such  measures  as  may 
be  found  necessary,  to  avert  the  danger  of  hostilities 
with  the  Indians,  and  to  incline  them  to  treat  with 
the  commissioners  of  congress;  and  for  that  purpose 


*  The  stories  of  these  border  skirmishers,  which  yet  live  in  the  traditions 
of  the  west,  are  highly  worthy  of  collection.  They  exhibit  scenes  of  craft, 
boldness,  and  ferocity,  on  the  part  of  the  savages,  and  of  heroic  and  despe-y 
rate  defence  by  the  semi-barbarous  men,  women,  and  children,  who  were 
the  objects  of  these  attacks,  which  mark  the  characters  of  both  sides  in  a 
most  interesting  manner.  Those  tales  of  the  long,  obstinate,  and  bloody  de- 
fence of  log  cabins ;  of  the  almost  incredible  achievements  of  women  and 
little  boys  ;  of  the  sometimes  total  and  sometimes  partial  havoc  of  families ; 
of  the  captivity,  tortures,  and  death,  of  some  ;  and  the  miraculous  escape, 
wanderings,  and  preservation,  of  others — would  form  a  book  of  more  interest 
than  any  other  that  could  be  put  into  the  hands  of  a  Virginian  reader ;  and 
would  furnish  the  subject  of  many  a  novel,  drama,  and  painting.  The  ad- 
venture of  captain  Smith  and  Pocahontas,  if  you  put  aside  the  dignity  of 
their  characters,  is  cold  and  tame,  when  compared  with  some  which  are  re- 
lated among  the  western  inhabitants  of  this  state. 


240  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

to  draw  on  the  treasury  for  any  sum  of  money  not  ex- 
ceeding one  thousand  pounds,  which  shall  stand  charg- 
ed to  the  account  of  money  issued  for  the  contingent 
charges  of  government/' 

A  treaty  with  the  Indians,  however,  was  well  known 
to  be  a  miserable  expedient;  the  benefit  of  which  would 
scarcely  last  as  long  as  the  ceremonies  that  produced 
it.  The  reflecting  politician  could  not  help  seeing 
that,  in  order  to  remove  the  annoyance  effectually, 
the  remedy  must  go  to  the  root  of  the  disease — that 
that  inveterate,  and  fatal  enmity  which  rankled  in  the 
hearts  of  the  Indians,  must  be  eradicated — that  a  com- 
mon interest  and  congenial  feelings  between  them  and 
their  white  neighbours  must  be  created — and  humanity 
and  civilization  gradually  superinduced  upon  the  Indian 
character.  The  difficulty  lay  in  devising  a  mode  to 
effect  these  objects.  The  white  people  who  inhabited 
the  frontier,  from  the  constant  state  of  warfare  in  which 
they  lived  with  the  Indians,  had  imbibed  much  of  their 
character;  and  learned  to  delight  so  highly  in  scenes  of 
crafty,  bloody,  and  desperate  conflict,  that  they  as  often 
gave  as  they  received  the  provocation  to  hostilities. 

Hunting,  which  was  their  occupation,  became  dull 
and  tiresome,  unless  diversified  occasionally,  by  the  more 
animated  and  piquant  amusement  of  an  Indian  skir- 
mish; just  as  "  the  blood  more  stirs,  to  rouse  a  lion  than 
to  start  a  hare/'  The  policy  therefore,  which  was  to 
produce  the  deep  and  beneficial  change  that  was  me- 
ditated, must  have  respect  to  both  sides,  and  be  cal- 
culated to  implant  kind  affections  in  bosoms,  which  at 
present  were  filled  only  with  reciprocal  and  deadly 
hatred.  The  remedy  suggested  by  Mr.  Henry  was  to 
encourage  marriages  between  these  coterminous  ene- 
mies; and  having  succeeded  in  the  committee  of  the 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  241 

whole  house  to  procure  the  report  of  a  resolution  to 
this  effect,  he  prepared  a  bill  which  he  is  said  to  have 
advocated  with  irresistible  earnestness  and  eloquence. 
The  inducements  held  out  by  this  bill,  to  promote  these 
marriages,  were  pecuniary  bounties  to  be  given  on  the 
certificate  of  marriage,  and  to  be  repeated  at  the  birth 
of  each  child;  exemption  from  taxes;  and  the  free  use 
of  a  seminary  of  learning,  to  be  erected  for  the  purpose, 
and  supported  at  the  expense  of  the  state. 


# 


*    This  bill,  which  is  thought  worthy  of  preservation   as  a  political 
curiosity,  is  as  follows  : — 

"  A  bill  for  the  encouragement  of  marriages  with  the  Indians. 

"Whereas  intermarriages  between  the  citizens  of  this  commonwealth 
and  the  Indians  living  in  its  neighbourhood,  may  have  great  effect  in  con- 
ciliating the  friendship  and  confidence  of  the  latter,  whereby  not  only  their 
civilization  may  in  some  degree  be  finally  brought  about,  but  in  the  mean 
tune  their  hostile  inroads  be  prevented ;  for  encouraging  such  intermar- 
riages, Be  it  enacted  by  the  general  assembly,  That  if  any  free  white  male 
inhabitant  of  this  commonwealth  shall,  according  to  the  laws  thereof,  enter 
into  the  bonds  of  matrimony  with  an  Indian  female,  being  of  lawful  age, 
and  under  no  precontract  to  any  Indian  male,  and  shall  thereby  induce  her 
to  become  an  inhabitant  of  this  commonwealth,  and  to  live  with  him  in  the 
character  of  a  wife,  such  male  inhabitant,  on  producing  a  certificate  of  such 
marriage  under  the  hand  and  seal  of  the  person  celebrating  the  same,  shall 
be  entitled  to  receive  a  premium  of pounds,  out  of  any  unappro- 
priated money  which  the  treasurer  may  have  in  his  hands,  or  of  such  money 
as  may  hereafter  be  appropriated  to  such  use ;  shall  over  and  above  such 

premium,be  entitled  to  the  sum  of pounds  for  every  child  proceeding 

from  such  marriage,  on  a  certificate  of  the  birth  thereof  and  their  apparent 
cohabitancy,  under  the  hand  and  seal  of  any  one  justice  of  the  peace  of  the 
county  in  which  he  resides,  and  shall  moreover  be  exempted  from  all  taxes 
on  his  person  and  property  for  and  during  such  cohabitancy. 

"  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  if  any  free  female  inhabitant  of  this  com- 
monwealth shall  in  like  manner,  intermarry  with  any  male  Indian  of  lawful 

age,  they  shall,  on  a  certificate  thereof  as  aforesaid,  be  entitled  to 

pounds,  to  be  paid  as  aforesaid,  and  laid  out  under  the  direction  of  the 
court  of  the  county,  within  v/hich  such  marriage  shall  be  celebrated,  in 
the  purchase   of  live  stock  for  his  and  her  use,  and  such  male  Indian 

shall  be  annually  on  the  first  day  of  October,  entitled  to  pounds,  to 

be  paid  as  aforesaid,  and  laid  out,  under  the  direction  of  the  said  court,  in 
the  purchase  of  clothes  for  his  use  ;  and  each  male  child  proceeding  from 
such  intermarriage  shall,  at  the  age  of——,  be  removed  to  such  public 

Hh 


24-2  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

While  Mr.  Hemy  continued  a  member  of  the  house, 
the  progress  of  this  bill  was  unimpeded.  It  passed 
through  a  first  and  second  reading,  and  was  engrossed 
for  its  final  passage,  when  his  election  as  governor  took 
effect,  and  displaced  him  from  the  floor:  on  the  third 
day  after  which  event,  the  bill  was  read  a  thud  time  and 
rejected. 

It  were  an  useless  waste  of  time  to  speculate  on  the 
probable  effects  of  this  measure,  had  it  succeeded.  It  is 
considered  however,  as  indicative  of  great  humanity 
of  character,  and  as  marked  with  great  boldness, 
if  not  soundness  of  policy.  Mr.  Henry  is  said  to 
have  been  extremely  sanguine  as  to  its  efficacy,  and  to 
have  supported  it  by  some  of  the  highest  displays  of  his 
eloquence. 

The  other  two  measures  to  which  I  have  adverted  as 
having  been  patronized  by  Mr.  Henry  at  this  session, 
were  the  incorporation  of  the  protestant  episcopal 
church,  and  what  is  called,   "  a  general  assessment/' 


seminary  of  learning'  as  the  executive  may  direct,  and  be  there  educated 
until  the  age  of  twenty -one,  at  the  public  expense,  to  be  defrayed  out  of  such 
unds  as  may  hereafter  be  appropriated  to  the  same.  And  the  governor, 
with  the  advice  of  council,  is  hereby  authorized  and  desired  to  cause  the 
benefit  of  this  provision  to  be  extended  to  all  such  male  children;  and  if  any 
such  male  Indian  shall  become  an  inhabitant  of  this  commonwealth,  he  shall 
be  moreover  exempted  from  all  taxes  on  his  person  or  the  property  he  may 
acquire. 

"  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  offspring  of  the  intermarriages  afore- 
said, shall  be  entitled  in  all  respects,  to  the  same  rights  and  privileges,  under 
the  laws  of  this  commonwealth,  as  if  they  had  proceeded  from  intermarriages 
among  free  white  inhabitants  thereof. 

"  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  executive  do  take  the  most  effectual 
and  speedy  measures  for  promulging  this  act  to  such  tribe  or  tribes  of  Indians 
as  they  may  think  necessary." 

On  the  third  reading  of  the  bill,  the  first  blank  was  filled  with:  ten — the 
second  with  five — the  third  with  ten — the  fourth  with  three — and  the  fifth 
with  ten  years. 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  243 

These  measures  have  been  frequently  stated,  in  conver- 
sation, as  proofs  of  a  leaning  on  the  part  of  Mr.  Henry 
towards  an  established  church,  and  that  too,  the  aristo- 
cratic church  of  England.  To  test  the  justness  of  this 
charge,  the  journals  of  the  house  of  delegates  have  been 
examined,  and  this  is  the  result  of  the  evidence  which 
they  furnish:  on  the  17th  of  November,  1784,  Mr.  Mat- 
thews reported  from  the  committee  of  the  whole  house, 
on  the  state  of  the  commonwealth,  the  following  resolu- 
tion: 

u  Resolved,  That  it  is  the  opinion  of  this  committee, 
that  acts  ought  to  pass  for  the  incorporation  of  all  socie- 
ties of  the  Christian  religion,  which  may  apply  for  the 
same." 

The  ayes  and  noes  having  been  called  for,  on  the  pas- 
sage of  this  resolution,  were,  ayes  sixty-two,  noes  twenty- 
three;  Mr.  Henry  being  with  the  majority. 

The  principle  being  thus  established  in  relation  to  all 
religious  societies,  which  should  desire  a  legal  existence 
for  the  benefit  of  acquiring  and  holding  property  to  the 
use  of  their  respective  churches,  leave  was  given,  on  the 
same  day,  to  bring  in  a  bill  to  incorporate  the  clergy  of 
the  protestant  episcopal  church,  which  had  brought 
itself  within  that  principle  by  having  applied  for  an  act 
of  incorporation;  and  Mr.  Henry  was  one,  but  not  the 
chairman,*  of  the  committee  appointed  to  bring  in  that 
bill.  How  a  measure  which  holds  out,  to  all  religious 
societies,  equally,  the  same  benefit,  can  be  charged  with 
partiality,  because  accepted  by  one  only,  it  is  not  very 

*  The  chairman  was  Mr.  Carter  II.  Harrison;  the  rest  of  the  committee 
were  Mr.  Henry,  Mr.  Thomas  Smith,  Mr.  William  Anderson,  and  Mr. 
Tazewell. 


244  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

easy  to  discern.  It  would  seem  to  an  ordinary  mind, 
that,  on  the  same  principle,  the  Christian  religion  itself 
might  be  chargeable  with  partiality,  since  its  offers, 
though  made  to  all,  are  accepted  but  by  few;  and  it  is 
very  certain  that,  if  Mr.  Henry  is  to  be  suspected  of  a 
bias  towards  an  established  church,  on  account  of  this 
vote,  the  charge  will  reach  some  of  the  foremost  and 
best  established  republicans  in  the  state,  whose  names 
stand  recorded  with  Mr.  Henry's  on  this  occasion,  and 
who  hold  to  this  day,  the  undiminished  confidence  of 
their  countrymen. 

The  other  measure,  the  general  assessment,  proceed- 
ed from  a  number  of  petitions  from  different  counties  of 
the  commonwealth,  which  prayed,  that  as  all  persons 
enjoyed  the  benefits  of  religion,  all  might  be  required  to 
contribute  to  the  expense  of  supporting  some  form  of 
worship  or  other.  The  committee  to  whom  these  peti- 
tions were  referred,  reported  a  bill  whose  preamble  sets 
forth  the  grounds  of  the  proceeding,  and  furnishes  a 
conclusive  refutation  of  the  charge  of  partiality  to  any 
particular  form  of  religion.  The  bill  is  entitled,  "  A 
bill,  establishing  a  provision  for  teachers  of  the  Chris- 
tian religion;"  and  its  preamble  is  in  the  following 
words: — "  Whereas,  the  general  diffusion  of  Christian 
knowledge  hath  a  natural  tendency  to  correct  the 
morals  of  men,  restrain  their  vices,  and  preserve  the 
peace  of  society;  which  cannot  be  effected  without  a 
competent  provision  for  learned  teachers,  who  may  be 
thereby,  enabled  to  devote  their  time  and  attention  to 
the  duty  of  instructing  such  citizens  as,  from  their  cir- 
cumstances and  want  of  education,  cannot  otherwise 
attain  such  knowledge;  and  it  is  judged  such  provision 
may  be  made  by  the  legislature,  witlwut  coimter*acting 
the  liberal  principle  lieretofore  adopted  and  intended  to 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  245 

he  preserved,  by  abolishing  all  distinctions  of  pre-emi- 
nence amongst  the  different  societies  or  communities  of 
Christians."    The  provisions  of  the  bill  are  in  the 
strictest  conformity  with  the  principles  announced  in 
the  close  of  the  preamble;  the  persons  subject  to  taxes 
are  required,  at  the  time  of  giving  in  a  list  of  their  tithe- 
ables,  to  declare  to  what  particular  religious  society  they 
choose  to  appropriate  the  sums  assessed  upon  them, 
respectively;  and,  in  the  event  of  their  failing  or  declin- 
ing to  specify  any  appropriation,  the  sums  thus  circum- 
stanced, are  directed  to  be  paid  to  the  treasurer,  and 
applied  by  the  general  assembly,  to  the  encouragement 
of  seminaries  of  learning,  in  the  counties  where  such 
sums  shall  arise.     If  there  be  any  evidence  of  a  leaning 
towards  any  particular  religious  sect  in  this  bill,  or  any 
indication  of  a  desire  for  an  established  church,  the 
author  of  these  sketches  has  not  been  able  to  discover 
them.     Mr.  Henry  was  a  sincere  believer  in  the  Chris- 
tian religion,  and  had  a  strong  desire  for  the  successful 
propagation  of  the  gospel,  but  there  was  no  tincture  of 
bigotry  or  intolerance  in  his  sentiments;  nor  have  I  been 
able  to  learn,  that  he  had  a  punctilious  preference  for  any 
particular  form  of  worship.    His  faith  regarded  the  vital 
spirit  of  the  gospel;  and  busied  itself  not  at  all,  with 
external  ceremonies  or  controverted  tenets. 

Both  these  bills  "  for  incorporating  the  protestant 
episcopal  church,"  and  "  establishing  a  provision  for 
teachers  of  the  Christian  religion,"  were  reported  after 
Mr.  Henry  had  ceased  to  be  a  member  of  the  house; 
but  the  resolutions  on  which  they  were  founded,  were 
adopted  while  he  continued  a  member,  and  had  his 
warmest  support.  The  first  bill  passed  into  a  law;  the 
last  was  rejected  by  a  small  majority,  on  the  third 
reading;. 


£46  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

The  same  session  afforded  Mr.  Henry  a  double  op- 
portunity of  gratifying,  in  the  most  exquisite  manner, 
that  naturally  bland  and  courteous  spirit,  which  so  emi- 
nently distinguished  his  character.  General  Washington 
and  the  marquis  la  Fayette,  both  of  them  objects  of  the 
warmest  love  and  gratitude  to  this  country,  visited  Rich- 
mond in  November.  They  arrived  on  different  days. 
The  general  entered  the  city  on  the  15th,  and  the 
journal  of  the  next  morning  exhibits  the  following 
order:  "  The  house  being  informed  of  the  arrival 
of  general  Washington  in  this  city,  Resolved,  nemine 
contradicente,  that  as  a  mark  of  their  reverence  for  his 
character  and  affection  for  his  person,  a  committee  of 
five  members  be  appointed  to  wait  upon  him,  with  the 
respectful  regard  of  this  house,  to  express  to  him  the 
satisfaction  they  feel  in  the  opportunity  afforded  by  his 
presence,  of  offering  this  tribute  to  his  merits;  and  to 
assure  him,  that  as  they  not  only  retain  the  most  lasting 
impressions  of  the  transcendent  services  rendered  in 
his  late  public  character,  but  have,  since  his  return  to 
private  life,  experienced  proofs,  that  no  change  of  situa- 
tion can  turn  his  thoughts  from  the  welfare  of  his 
country,  so  his  happiness  can  never  cease  to  be  an 
object  of  their  most  devout  wishes  and  fervent  suppli- 
cations." 

"  And  a  committee  was  appointed  of  Mr.  Henry,  Mr. 
Jones,  (of  King  George,)  Mr.  Madison,  Mr.  Carter  H. 
Harrison,  and  Mr.  Carrington." 

To  this  spontaneous  and  unanimous  burst  of  feeling, 
general  Washington  returned  an  answer  marked  with 
his  characteristic  modesty,  and  full  of  the  most  touch- 
ing sensibility.  It  is  worthy  of  insertion,  as  showing  in 
a  soft  and  winning  light,  a  character,  with  which  we  are 
apt  to  associate  only  the  images  of  a  dignity  and  reserve. 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  24,7 

approaching  to  sternness.  "  Gentlemen/'  said  he, 
"  my  sensibility  is  deeply  affected  by  this  distinguished 
mark  of  the  affectionate  regard  of  your  honourable 
house.  I  lament,  on  this  occasion,  the  want  of  those 
powers  which  would  enable  me  to  do  justice  to  my 
feelings,  and  shall  rely  upon  your  indulgent  report,  to 
supply  the  defect;  at  the  same  time,  I  pray  you  to  pre- 
sent for  me,  the  strongest  assurances  of  unalterable 
affection  and  gratitude,  for  this  last  pleasing  and  flatter- 
ing attention  of  my  country." 

The  marquis,  who  had  been  to  France  since  the 
close  of  hostilities,  made  his  entree  on  the  morning  of 
the  18th  of  November;  and  the  house  immediately  on 
its  meeting,  came  to  the  following  resolution:  "  The 
house  being  informed  of  the  arrival,  this  morning,  of 
the  marquis  de  la  Fayette  in  this  city,  Resolved,  nemim 
contradicente,  that  a  committee  of  five  be  appointed,  to 
present  to  him  the  affectionate  respects  of  this  house, 
to  signify  to  him  their  sensibility  to  the  pleasing  proof, 
given  by  this  visit  to  the  United  States,  and  to  this  state 
in  particular;  that  the  benevolent  and  honourable  senti- 
ments which  originally  prompted  him  to  embark  in  the 
hazardous  fortunes  of  America,  still  render  the  pros- 
perity of  its  affairs  an  object  of  his  attention  and  regard; 
and  to  assure  him,  that  they  cannot  review  the  scenes 
of  blood  and  danger  through  which  we  have  arrived  at 
the  blessings  of  peace,  without  being  touched,  in  the 
most  lively  manner,  with  the  recollection,  not  only  of  the 
invaluable  services  for  which  the  United  States  at  large 
are  so  much  indebted  to  him,  but  of  that  conspicuous 
display  of  cool  intrepidity  and  wise  conduct,  during  his 
command  in  the  campaign  of  1781,  which,  by  having 
so  essentially  served  this  state  in  particular,  have  given 
him  so  just  a  title  to  its  particular  acknowledgments. 


24-B  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

That,  impressed  as  they  thus  are  with  the  distinguished 
lustre  of  his  character,  they  cannot  form  a  wish  more 
suitable,  than  that  the  lesson  it  affords  may  inspire  all 
those  whose  noble  minds  may  emulate  his  glory,  to  pur- 
sue it  by  means  equally  auspicious  to  the  interests  of 
humanity/' 

"  And  a  committee  was  appointed  of  Mr.  Henry,  Mr. 
Madison,  Mr.  Jones,  (of  King  George,)  Mr.  Matthews, 
and  Mr.  Brent/' 

To  this  address  the  marquis  made  the  following  polite 
and  feeling  answer: 

"  Gentlemen, 

"  With  the  most  respectful  thanks  to  your  honour- 
able body,  permit  me  to  acknowledge,  not  only  the  flat- 
tering favour  they  are  now  pleased  to  confer,  but  also 
the  constant  partiality  and  unbounded  confidence  of  this 
state,  which,  in  trying  times,  I  have  so  happily  expe- 
rienced. Through  the  continent,  gentlemen,  it  is  most 
pleasing  for  me  to  join  with  my  friends  in  mutual  con- 
gratulations; and  I  need  not  add,  what  my  sentiments 
must  be  in  Virginia,  where  step  by  step  have  I  so  keenly 
felt  for  her  distress,  so  eagerly  enjoyed  her  recovery. 
Our  armed  force  was  obliged  to  retreat,  but  your 
patriotic  hearts  stood  unshaken;  and,  while  either  at  that 
period,  or  in  our  better  hours,  my  obligations  to  you  are 
numberless;  I  am  happy  in  this  opportunity  to  observe, 
that  the  excellent  services  of  your  militia  were  conti- 
nued with  unparalleled  steadiness.  Impressed  with  the 
necessity  of  federal  union,  I  was  the  more  pleased  in 
the  command  of  an  army  so  peculiarly  federal;  as  Vir- 
ginia herself  freely  bled  in  defence  of  her  sister  states. 
"  In  my  wishes  to  this  commonwealth,  gentlemen.  I 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  219 

will  persevere  with  the  same  zeal,  that  once  and  for 
ever,  has  devoted  me  to  her.  May  her  fertile  soil  ra- 
pidly increase  her  wealth — may  all  the  waters  which  so 
luxuriantly  flow  within  her  limits,  be  happy  channels  of 
the  most  extensive  trade — and  may  she  in  her  wisdom, 
and  the  enjoyment  of  prosperity,  continue  to  give  the 
world  unquestionable  proofs  of  her  philanthropy  and 
her  regard  for  the  liberties  of  all  mankind. 

"  La  Fayette." 

Time  had  now  brought  forward  several  new  political 
characters,  who  had  risen  high  in  the  public  estima- 
tion; but  Mr.  Henry  and  Mr.  Lee  still  kept  their 
ground,  far  in  the  van.  A  gentleman  of  great  distinc- 
tion, who  began  his  public  career  in  1 783,  found  both 
these  eminent  men  in  the  house  of  delegates,  and  heard 
them  for  the  first  time  in  debate:  he  served  through  the 
two  sessions  of  that  and  those  of  the  following  year, 
and  has  communicated  to  me  so  vivid  and  interesting  a 
comparison  of  their  merits,  as  they  struck  his  young 
and  ardent  mind,  that  I  cannot  consent  to  withhold  it 
from  the  reader. 

"  I  met  with  Patrick  Henry  in  the  assembly  in  May, 
1783:  I  also  then  met  with  Richard  H.  Lee.  I  lodged 
with  Mr.  Lee  one  or  two  sessions,  and  was  perfectly 
acquainted  with  him,  while  I  was  yet  a  stranger  to  Mr. 
Henry.  These  two  gentlemen  were  the  great  leaders 
in  the  house  of  delegates,  and  were  almost  constantly 
opposed:  there  were  many  other  great  men  who  be- 
longed to  that  body;  but,  as  orators,  they  cannot  be 
named  with  Henry  or  Lee.  Mr.  Lee  was  a  polished 
gentleman:  he  had  lost  the  use  of  one  of  his  hands,  but 
his  manner  was  perfectly  graceful.     His  language  was 

always  chaste,  and  although  somewhat  too  monotonous, 

i  i 


250  SKETCHES  OP  THE 

his  speeches  were  always  pleasing;  yet  he  did  not  ravish 
your  senses,  nor  carry  away  your  judgment  by  storm. 
His  was  the  mediate  class  of  eloquence  described  by 
Rollin  in  his  belles  lettres;  he  was  like  a  beautiful  river, 
meandering  through  a  flowery  mead,  but  which  never 
overflowed  its  banks.  It  was  Henry  who  was  the  moun- 
tain torrent  that  swept  away  every  thing  before  it:  it 
was  he  alone  who  thundered  and  lightened:  he  alone 
attained  that  sublime  species  of  eloquence,  also  men- 
tioned by  Rollin. 

"  It  has  been  one  of  the  greatest  pleasures  of  my 
life  to  hear  these  two  great  masters,  almost  constantly 
opposed  to  each  other,  for  several  sessions.  I  had  no 
relish  for  any  other  speaker.  Henry  was  almost  always 
victorious.  He  was  as  much  superior  to  Lee  in  temper 
as  in  eloquence;  for  while  with  a  modesty  approaching 
almost  to  humility,  he  would  apologize  to  the  house  for 
being  so  often  "  obliged  to  differ  from  the  honourable 
gentleman,  which  he  assured  them  was  from  no  want  of 
respect  for  him."  Lee  was  frequently  much  chafed  by 
the  opposition;  and  I  once  heard  him  say  aloud,  and 
petulantly,  after  sustaining  a  great  defeat,  that  "  if  the 
votes  were  weighed  instead  of  being  counted,  he 
should  not  have  lost  it."* 


*  This  hit  of  Mr.  Lee's  was  thought  a  very  happy  one  at  the  time.  I 
have  heard  it  mentioned  by  several  others  who  were  members  of  the  house, 
and  particularly  by  judge  Tyler.  This  gentleman  represented  it  as  having 
occurred  after  a  division  and  count  of  the  house,  and  just  as  the  members 
were  about  to  return  to  their  seats.  A  member  who  was  in  the  majority, 
and  who  was  not  very  remarkable  either  for  intellect  or  urbanity,  said,  with 
a  coarse  laugh,  to  Mr.  Lee,  "  Well,  you  see  you  have  lost  it." — Upon  which 
the  latter,  looking  at  him  with  rather  a  contemptuous  and  sneering  counte- 
nance, answered,  "  Yes,  /  have  lost  it;  but  if  votes  were  -weighed  instead  of 
being  counted,  I  should  not  have  lost  it." 

Was  this  thought  original  in  Mr.  Lee,  or  had  he  unconsciously  borrowed  it 
from  the  younger  Pliny  ?    "  Sed  hoc  pluribus  [levius]  visum  est.    JWimeran- 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  251 

"  Mr.  Henry  was  inferior  to  Mr.  Lee  in  the  grace- 
fulness of  his  action,  and  perhaps  also  the  chasteness  of 
his  language;  yet  his  language  was  seldom  incorrect, 
and  his  address  always  striking.  He  had  a  fine  blue 
eye,  and  an  earnest  manner  which  made  it  impossible 
not  to  attend  to  him.  His  speaking  was  unequal,  and 
always  rose  with  the  subject  and  the  exigency.  In  this 
respect  he  differed  entirely  from  Mr.  Lee,  who  was 
always  equal,  and  therefore  less  interesting.  At  some 
times  Mr.  Henry  would  seem  to  hobble,  (especially  at 
the  beginning  of  his  speeches,)  and  at  others,  his  tones 
would  be  almost  disagreeable:  yet  it  was  by  means  of 
his  tones,  and  the  happy  modulation  of  his  voice,  that 
his  speaking  had  perhaps  its  greatest  effect.  He  had  a 
happy  articulation — a  clear,  bold,  strong  voice — and 
every  syllable  was  distinctly  uttered.  He  was  always 
very  unassuming,  and  very  respectful  towards  his 
adversaries;  the  consequence  was,  that  no  feeling  of 
disgust  or  animosity  was  arrayed  against  him.  He  was 
great  at  a  reply,  and  greater  in  proportion  to  the  pres- 
sure which  was  bearing  upon  him;  and  it  seemed  to 
me,  from  the  frequent  opportunities  of  observation 
afforded  me  during  the  period  of  which  I  have  spoken, 
that  the  resources  of  his  mind  and  of  his  eloquence 
were  equal  to  any  drafts  which  could  possibly  be  made 
upon  them/7 

This  inequality  in  the  speeches  of  Mr.  Henry  was 

tur  enim  sententice,  non  ponderantur  .•_  nee  aliud  in  publico  consilio  potest  fieri, 
in  quo  nihil  est  tarn  insequale,  quam  sequalitas  ipsa ;  nam  cum  sit  impar  pru- 
dentia,  par  omnium  jus  est."     Pun.  Epist.  Lib.  n.  Epist.  XH. 

"  Yet  these  reflections,  it  seems,  made  no  impression  upon  the  majority. 
Votes  go  by  number,  not  -weight  ,•  nor  can  it  be  otherwise  in  assemblies  of  this 
kind,  where  nothing  is  more  unequal  than  that  equality  which  prevails 
in  them ;  for  though  every  member  has  the  same  weight  of  suffrage, 
every  member  has  not  the  same  strength  of  judgment." 

Mexmoth's  Translation  of  Pliny.    London,  1748, 


252  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

imputed  by  some  of  his  observers  to  art.  He  always 
spoke  they  say,  for  victory,  and  wishing  to  cany  every 
one  with  him,  adapted  the  different  parts  of  his  dis- 
course to  their  different  capacities.  A  critic  of  a  higher 
order  would  sometimes  think  him  trifling,  when  in 
truth  he  was  making  a  most  powerful  impression  on  the 
weaker  members  of  the  house.  By  these  means,  it  is 
said,  he  contrived  to  worm  his  way  through  the  whole 
body,  and  to  insinuate  his  influence  into  every  mind. 
When  he  hobbled,  it  was  like  the  bird  that  thus  art- 
fully seeks  to  decoy  away  the  foot  of  the  intruder  from 
the  precious  deposit  of  her  brood;  and  at  the  moment 
when  it  would  be  thought  that  his  strength  was  almost 
exhausted,  he  would  spring  magnificently  from  the  earth, 
and  tower  above  the  clouds. 

He  knew  all  the  local  interests  and  prejudices  of 
every  quarter  of  the  state,  and  of  every  county  in  it: 
and  whether  these  prejudices  were  rational  or  irra- 
tional, it  is  said  that  he  would  appeal  to  them  without 
hesitation,  and,  whenever  he  found  it  necessary,  enlist 
them  in  his  cause.  His  address  on  these  occasions  has 
been  highly  admired,  even  by  those  who  have  censured 
the  course  as  deficient  in  dignity  and  candour.  It  was 
executed  with  so  much  delicacy  and  adroitness,  and 
covered  under  a  countenance  of  such  apostolic  solem- 
nity, that  the  persons  on  whom  he  was  operating  were 
unconscious  of  the  design.  Winding  his  way  thus 
artfully  through  the  house,  from  county  to  county,  from 
prejudice  to  prejudice,  with  the  power  of  moving  them, 
when  he  pleased,  from  tears  to  laughter,  from  laughter 
to  tears,  of  astonishing  their  imaginations,  and  over- 
whelming their  judgments  and  hearts,  it  is  easy  to  con- 
ceive how  irresistible  he  must  have  been.  When  with 
these  prodigious  faculties  the  reader    connects    his 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  253 

engaging  deportment  out  of  the  house — the  uncommon 
kindness  and  gentleness  of  his  nature — the  simplicity, 
frankness,  and  amenity  of  his  manners — the  innocent 
playfulness  and  instruction  of  his  conversation — the 
integrity  of  his  life — and  the  high  sense  of  the  services 
which  he  had  rendered  to  the  cause  of  liberty  and  his 
country — he  will  readily  perceive,  that  the  opinions  and 
wishes  of  such  a  man  would  be,  of  themselves,  almost 
decisive  of  any  question. 

The  artifice  of  resorting  to  erroneous  local  pre- 
judices, in  a  legislative  debate,  is  certainly  not  to  be 
commended.  Truth  stands  in  need  of  no  such  aids. 
It  must  be  admitted  that  there  is  more  purity,  as  well 
as  dignity,  in  supporting  a  sound  measure,  by  sound 
arguments  only;  and  we  must  be  prepared  to  become 
Jesuits,  before  we  can  justify  a  resort  to  wrong  means,  to 
promote  even  a  right  end.  In  excuse  of  Mr.  Henry,  we 
have  nothing  to  urge  except  immemorial  and  almost  uni- 
versal usage:  and  it  is  moreover,  highly  probable  that  ma- 
ny of  the  instances,  in  which  he  was  accused  of  resorting 
improperly  to  local  prejudices,  were  cases  in  which  the 
questions  were,  from  their  nature,  to  be  decided  in  a  great 
measure  by  local  interests.  Of  this  description  is  the 
following  one,  now  furnished  at  my  request,  in  writing 
by  judge  Archibald  Stuart,  from  whom  I  had  the 
pleasure  to  hear  it  in  conversation  several  years  ago. 

"  At  your  request,  I  attempt  a  narrative  of  the  extra- 
ordinary effects  of  Mr.  Henry's  eloquence  in  the  Vir- 
ginia legislature,  about  the  year  1784,  when  I  was  pre- 
sent as  a  member  of  that  body. 

The  finances  of  the  country  had  been  much  derang- 
ed during  the  war,  and  public  credit  was  at  a  low  ebb: 
a  party  in  the  legislature  thought  it  then  high  time  to 
place  the  character  and  credit  of  the  state  on  a  more 


354  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

respectable  footing,  by  laying  taxes  commensurate  with 
all  the  public  demands.  With  this  view,  a  bill  had  been 
brought  into  the  house  and  referred  to  a  committee  of 
the  whole;  in  support  of  which,  the  then  speaker  (Mr. 
Tyler,)  Henry  Tazewell,  Mann  Page,  William  Ronald, 
and  many  other  members  of  great  respectability  (in- 
cluding to  the  best  of  my  recollection,  Richard  H.  Lee, 
and  perhaps  Mr.  Madison)  took  an  active  part.  Mr. 
Henry,  on  the  other  hand,  was  of  opinion  that  this  was 
a  premature  attempt;  that  policy  required  that  the  peo- 
ple should  have  some  repose,  after  the  fatigues  and 
privations  to  which  they  had  been  subjected  during  a 
long  and  arduous  struggle  for  independence. 

"  The  advocates  of  the  bill,  in  committee  of  the 
whole  house,  used  their  utmost  efforts,  and  were  suc- 
cessful in  conforming  it  to  their  views,  by  such  a  ma- 
jority (say  thirty)  as  seemed  to  insure  its  passage.  When 
the  committee  rose,  the  bill  was  instantly  reported  to 
the  house;  when  Mr.  Henry,  who  had  been  excited 
and  roused  by  his  recent  defeat,  came  forward  again  in 
all  the  majesty  of  his  power.  For  some  time  after  he 
commenced  speaking,  the  countenances  of  his  oppo- 
nents indicated  no  apprehension  of  danger  to  their 
cause. 

"  The  feelings  of  Mr.  Tyler,  which  were  sometimes 
warm,  could  not  on  that  occasion  be  concealed,  even 
in  the  chair.  His  countenance  was  forbidding,  even 
repulsive,  and  his  face  turned  from  the  speaker.  Mr. 
Tazewell  was  reading  a  pamphlet;  and  Mr.  Page  was 
more  than  usually  grave.  After  some  time,  however, 
it  was  discovered  that  Mr.  Tyler's  countenance  gradu- 
ally began  to  relax:  he  would  occasionally  look  at  Mr. 
Henry;  sometimes  smile;  his  attention  by  degrees  be- 
came more  fixed;  at  length  it  became  completely  so; 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  255 

he  next  appeared  to  be  in  good  humour;  he  leaned 
towards  Mr.  Henry,  appeared  charmed  and  delighted, 
and  finally  lost  in  wonder  and  amazement.  The  pro- 
gress of  these  feelings  was  legible  in  his  countenance. 

"  Mr.  Henry  drew  a  most  affecting  picture  of  the 
state  of  poverty  and  suffering,  in  which  the  people  of 
the  upper  counties  had  been  left  by  the  war.  His  de- 
lineation of  their  wants  and  wretchedness  was  so 
minute,  so  full  of  feeling,  and  with  all  so  true,  that  he 
could  scarcely  fail  to  enlist  on  his  side,  every  sympa- 
thetic mind.  He  contrasted  the  severe  toil  by  which 
they  had  to  gain  their  daily  subsistence,  with  the  faci- 
lities enjoyed  by  the  people  of  the  lower  counties.  The 
latter,  he  said,  residing  on  the  salt  rivers  and  creeks, 
could  draw  their  supplies  at  pleasure,  from  the  waters 
that  flowed  by  their  doors;  and  then  he  presented  such 
a  ludicrous  image  of  the  members  who  had  advocated 
the  bill,  (the  most  of  whom  were  from  the  lower  coun- 
ties,) peeping  and  peering  along  the  shores  of  the 
creeks,  to  pick  up  their  mess  of  crabs,  or  paddling  off  to 
the  oyster  rocks  to  rake  for  their  daily  bread*  as  filled 
the  house  with  a  roar  of  merriment.  Mr  Tazewell  laid 
down  his  pamphlet,  and  shook  his  sides  with  laughter; 
even  the  gravity  of  Mr.  Page  was  affected;  a  corre- 
sponding change  of  countenances  prevailed  through  the 
ranks  of  the  advocates  of  the  bill,  and  you  might  dis- 
cover that  they  had  surrendered  their  cause.  In  this 
they  were  not  disappointed:  for  on  a  division,  Mr. 
Henry  had  a  majority  of  upwards  of  thirty  against  the 
hill." 


*  At  that  day,  (and  perhaps  still)  the  poorer  people  on  the  salt  creeks, 
lived  almost  exclusively  on  fish  ;  passing  whole  days,  and  sometimes  weeks, 
without  seeing  a  grain  of  bread. 


256  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

If  this  be  a  fair  specimen  of  the  cases  (as  probably 
it  is)  in  which  Mr.  Henry  was  accused  of  appealing 
improperly  to  local  prejudices,  the  censure  seems  unde- 
served. It  is  obvious  that  the  considerations  urged  by 
him,  on  this  occasion,  belonged  properly  to  the  subject, 
and  that  the  appeal  to  local  circumstances  was  fairly 
made.  Candour  will  justify  us  in  looking,  with  great 
distrust,  to  the  censures  cast  on  this  extraordinary  man, 
by  rivals  whom  he  had  obscured. 

On  the  17th  of  November,  1784,  Mr.  Henry  was 
again  elected  governor  of  Virginia,  to  commence  his 
service  from  the  30th  day  of  the  same  month.  The 
communication  made  by  him  to  the  first  legislature 
which  met  after  his  election,  is  inserted  in  the  Appendix; 
it  is  given  at  large,  as  a  specimen  of  Mr.  Henry's  style 
in  more  extended  compositions  than  have  yet  been  sub- 
mitted to  the  reader,  and  for  the  further  purpose  of 
showing,  that  the  objects  with  which  a  governor  of  Vir- 
ginia, acting  within  the  pale  of  the  constitution,  is  con- 
versant in  time  of  peace,  are  not  such  as  to  shed  much 
lustre  on  his  character,  or  to  solicit,  very  powerfully,  the 
attention  of  his  biographer.* 

In  examining  the  public  archives  of  this  date,  there 
is  a  circumstance  whose  frequent  and  indeed  constant 
recurrence,  presses  itself  most  painfully  on  the  attention: 
I  mean  the  resignation  of  state  officers,  on  the  plea  of  a 
necessity  to  resort  to  some  more  effectual  means  of  sub- 
sistence. It  is  not  generally  known,  that  the  councils 
of  Virginia  were,  during  the  period  of  which  we  are 
now  speaking,  enlightened  and  adorned  by  some  of  the 
brightest  of  her  sons:  much  less  is  it  known  that  they 

*  See  Appendix.    Note  B. 


LIFE  OF  HENRV.  25*1 

were  driven  from  those  councils,  by  that  wretched 
policy  which  has  always  regulated  the  salaries  of  offi- 
cers in  Virginia.  The  letters  of  resignation,  during 
the  years  1784,  1785  and  1786,  which  now  stand  on 
the  public  files,  afford  the  best  comment  on  this  policy. 
Virginia  lost,  during  those  years,  the  services  of  such 
men  as  have  rarely  existed  in  this  or  any  other  country ; 
and  such  as  she  can  never  hope  to  see  again  in  her 
councils,  until  the  system  of  penury  shall  yield  to  that  of 
liberality.  At  the  close  of  the  war  indeed,  there  was 
some  apology  for  this  penury;  the  countiy  was  wretch- 
edly poor,  and  in  debt.  But  this  cause  has  long  since 
ceased,  and  with  it  also,  should  cease  the  effect.  Vir- 
ginia is  now  rich,  and  may  fill  her  offices  with  the  flower 
of  her  sons;  but  can  it  be  expected  that  men  who  wish 
to  live  free  from  debt,  and  to  leave  their  families  inde- 
pendent at  their  deaths,  wfll  relinquish  the  pursuits  by 
which  they  are  able  to  effect  these  objects,  and  enter 
upon  a  service  full  of  care,  responsibility,  and  anxiety;  a 
service  whose  certain  fruits  (if  it  be  their  only  depend- 
ence) must  be  a  life  of  pecuniary  embarrassment;  and 
(what  is  still  worse)  their  wives  and  children  after  their 
deaths,  must  be  cast  on  the  charity  of  a  cold  and  un- 
feeling world?  Ought  such  a  sacrifice  to  be  expected? 
and  yet  must  it  not  be  the  inevitable  consequence  of 
an  exclusive  dependence  on  the  salary  of  any  office 
in  Virginia,  which  requires  talents  of  the  highest 
order?* 


*  How  affecting  is  that  spectacle,  which  we  have  seen  of  a  public  officer, 
who,  having  worn  out  the  prime  and  vigour  of  life  in  the  service  of  his  coun- 
try, instead  of  being  enabled  to  retire,  in  old  age,  to  the  repose  and  peace 
which  he  has  so  justly  deserved,  is  compelled  to  toil  on  for  subsistence,  though 
trembling,  perhaps,  under  the   weight  of  eighty  winters,    oppressed  by 

ivk 


258 


SKETCHES  OF  THE 


These  remarks  are  not  foreign  to  our  story;  in  the 
fall  of  1786,  while  yet  a  year  remained  of  his  constitu- 
tional term,  Mr.  Henry  was  under  the  necessity  of  retir- 
ing from  the  office  of  governor.  There  never  was  a 
man  whose  style  of  living  was  more  perfectly  unosten- 
tatious, temperate,  and  simple;  yet  the  salary  had  been 
inadequate  to  the  support  of  his  family:  and,  at  the  end 
of  two  years,  he  found  himself  involved  in  debts  which, 
for  the  moment,  he  saw  no  hope  of  paying,  but  by  the 
sacrifice  of  a  part  of  his  estate.  Let  it  be  remembered, 
that  this  occurred  in  the  year  1786;  and  let  it  be  further 
remembered,  that  the  salary  was  then  very  nearly  what 
it  still  remains! 

In  consequence  of  Mr.  Henry's  declining  a  re-elec- 
tion, the  legislature  proceeded  to  appoint  his  successor; 
and  then,  on  the  succeeding  25th  of  November,  the 
house  of  delegates  came  to  the  following  resolution: 

"  Resolved,  unanimously,  That  a  committee  be  ap- 
pointed to  wait  on  his  excellency  the  governor,  and 
present  him  the  thanks  of  this  house,  for  his  wise,  pru- 
dent, and  upright  administration,  during  his  last  appoint- 
ment of  chief  magistrate  of  this  commonwealth;  assur- 
ing him  that  they  retain  a  perfect  sense  of  his  abilities, 


debt,  harassed  by  his  creditors,  with  the  certainty  before  him  of  dying 
poor  and  involved  ;  and  leaving  his  posterity,  if  he  have  any,  on  the 
parish  !  How  forcibly  does  it  remind  us  of  that  pathetic  exclamation  of 
Wolsey : — 

"  O  Cromwell,  Cromwell, 
Had  I  but  serv'd  my  God,  with  half  the  zeal 
I  serv'd  my  king,  he  would  not,  in  mine  age, 
Have  left  me  naked  to  mine  enemies!" 

Is  it  in  reference  to  the  warm  and  generous  state  of  Virginia,  that  these 
reflections  can  be  made,  and  made  too  Math  truth  and  justice !  !  ' 


LIFE  OP  HENRY.  259 

in  the  discharge  of  the  duties  of  that  high  and  important 
office,  and  wish  him  all  domestic  happiness,  on  his  return 
to  private  life." 

To  this  resolution,  Mr.  Corbin,  one  of  the  com- 
mittee, reported  the  following  answer  from  Mr. 
Henry: — 


« 


Gentlemen, 


"  The  house  of  delegates  have  done  me  distinguish- 
ed honour,  by  the  resolution  they  have  been  pleased  to 
communicate  to  me  through  you.  I  am  happy  to  find 
my  endeavours  to  discharge  the  duties  of  my  station, 
have  met  with  their  favourable  acceptance. 

"  The  approbation  of  my  country,  is  the  highest 
reward  to  which  my  mind  is  capable  of  aspiring;  and  I 
shall  return  to  private  life,  highly  gratified  in  the  recol- 
lection of  this  instance  of  regard,  shown  me  by  the  house; 
having  only  to  regret  that  my  abilities  to  serve  my  coun- 
try have  come  so  short  of  my  wishes. 

"  At  the  same  time  that  I  make  my  best  acknowledg- 
ments to  the  house  for  their  goodness,  I  beg  leave  to 
express  my  particular  obligations  to  you  gentlemen,  for 
the  polite  manner  in  which  this  communication  is  made 
to  me." 

On  the  fourth  of  December  in  the  same  year,  Mr. 
Henry  was  appointed  by  the  legislature,  one  of  seven 
deputies  from  this  commonwealth  to  meet  a  convention 
proposed  to  be  held  in  Philadelphia,  on  the  following 
May,  for  the  purpose  of  revising  the  federal  constitu- 
tion. On  this  list  of  deputies,  his  name  stands  next  to 
that  of  him,  who  stood  of  right  before  all  others  in 
America;  the  order  of  appointment,  as  exhibited  by  the 


260  SKETCHES    OP   THE 

journal,  being  as  follows:  George  Washington,  Patrick 
Henry,  Edmund  Randolph,  John  Blair,  James  Madison, 
George  Mason,  and  George  Wythe. 

The  same  cause,  however,  which  had  constrained 
Mr.  Henry's  retirement  from  the  executive  chair  of  the 
state,  disabled  him  now  from  obeying  this  honourable 
call  of  his  country.  On  his  resigning  the  government, 
tie  retired  to  Prince  Edward  county,  and  endeavoured 
to  cast  about  for  the  means  of  extricating  himself  from 
his  debts.  At  the  age  of  fifty  years,  worn  down  by 
more  than  twenty  years  of  arduous  service  in  the  cause 
of  his  country,  eighteen  of  which  had  been  occupied 
by  the  toils  and  tempests  of  the  revolution,  it  was  na- 
tural for  him  to  wish  for  rest,  and  to  seek  some  secure 
and  placid  port  in  which  he  might  repose  himself  from 
the  fatigues  of  the  storm.  This  however  was  denied 
him ;  and  after  having  devoted  the  bloom  of  youth  and 
the  maturity  of  manhood  to  the  good  of  his  country, 
he  had  now  in  his  old  age  to  provide  for  his  family. 

"  He  had  never"  says  a  correspondent,*  "  been  in 
easy  circumstances;  and  soon  after  his  removal  to 
Prince  Edward  county,  conversing  with  his  usual  frank- 
ness with  one  of  his  neighbours,  he  expressed  his 
anxiety  under  the  debts  which  he  was  not  able  to  pay; 
the  reply  was  to  this  effect:  '  Go  back  to  the  bar;  your 
tongue  will  soon  pay  your  debts.  If  you  will  promise  to 
go,  I  will  give  you  a  retaining  fee  on  the  spot/ 

"'  This  blunt  advice,  determined  him  to  return  to  the 
practise  of  the  law;  which  he  did  in  the  beginning  of 
1788;  and  during  six  years  he  attended  regularly  the 
district  courts  of  Prince  Edward  and  New  London." 

Direful  must  have  been  the  necessity  which  drove  a 


Judge  Winston'. 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  261 

man  of  Mr.  Henry's  disposition  and  habits,  at  his  time 
of  life,  and  tempest-beaten  as  he  was,  to  resume  the 
practise  of  such  a  profession  as  the  law.  He  would  not, 
however,  undertake  the  technical  duties  of  the  profes- 
sion; his  engagements  were  confined  to  the  argument  of 
the  cause;  and  his  clients  had  of  course,  to  employ 
other  counsel,  to  conduct  the  pleadings,  and  ripen  their 
cases  for  hearing.  Hence  his  practise  was  restricted  to 
difficult  and  important  cases;  but  his  great  reputation 
kept  him  constantly  engaged:  he  was  frequently  called 
to  distant  courts:  the  light  of  his  eloquence  shone  in 
every  quarter  of  the  state,  and  thousands  of  tongues 
were  every  where  employed  in  repeating  the  fine  effu- 
sions of  his  genius. 

The  federal  constitution,  the  fruit  of  the  convention 
at  Philadelphia,  had  now  come  forth,  and  produced  an 
agitation  which  had  not  been  felt  since  the  return  of 
peace.  The  friends  and  the  enemies  to  its  adoption, 
were  equally  zealous  and  active  in  their  exertions  to 
promote  their  respective  wishes;  the  presses  through- 
out the  continent,  teemed  with  essays  on  the  subject; 
and  the  rostrum,  the  pulpit,  the  field,  and  the  forest, 
rung  with  declamations  and  discussions  of  the  most 
animated  character.  Every  assemblage  of  people,  for 
whatsoever  purpose  met,  either  for  court  or  church, 
muster  or  barbacue,  presented  an  arena  for  the  poli- 
tical combatants;  and  in  some  quarters  of  the  union, 
such  was  the  public  anxiety  of  the  occasion,  that  gen- 
tlemen in  the  habit  of  public  speaking,  converted  them- 
selves into  a  sort  of  itinerant  preachers,  going  from 
county  to  county,  and  from  state  to  state,  collecting  the 
people  by  distant  appointments,  and  challenging  all  ad- 
versaries to  meet  and  dispute  with  them,  the  propriety 
of  the  adoption  of  the  federal  constitution.     All  who 


262  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

sought  to  distinguish  themselves  by  public  speaking,  all 
candidates  for  popular  favour,  and  especially  the  junior 
members  of  the  bar,  nocked  to  these  meetings  from  the 
remotest  distances,  and  entered  the  lists  with  all  the 
ardour  and  gallantry  of  the  knights  of  former  times,  at 
their  tilts  and  tournaments.  Never  was  there  a  theme 
more  fruitful  of  discussion,  and  never  was  there  one 
more  amply  or  ably  discussed. 

Of  the  convention  which  was  to  decide  the  fate  of 
this  instrument  in  Virginia,  Mr.  Henry  was  chosen  a 
member  for  the  county  of  Prince  Edward.  Although 
the  constitution  had  come  forth  with  the  sanction  of  the 
revered  name  of  Washington,  and  carried  with  it  all 
the  weight  of  popularity  which  that  name  could  not 
fail  to  attach  to  any  proposition,  it  had  not  the  good 
fortune  to  be  approved  by  Mr.  Henry.  He  was  (to 
use  his  own  expression)  "  most  awfully  alarmed"  at  the 
idea  of  its  adoption;  for  he  considered  it  as  threatening 
the  liberties  of  his  country;  and  he  determined  there- 
fore, to  buckle  on  once  more  the  armour  which  he  had 
hung  up  in  the  temple  of  peace,  and  try  the  fortune  of 
this,  the  last  of  his  political  fields. 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  203 


SECTION  VIII 

The  convention  met  in  Richmond  on  the  2d  of  June, 
1 788,  and  exhibited  such  an  array  of  variegated  talents, 
as  had  never  been  collected  before  within  the  limits  of 
the  state,  and  such  an  one  as  it  may  well  be  feared  we 
shall  never  see  again.  A  few  of  the  most  eminent  of 
these  statesmen,  are  still  alive  ;  of  whom,  therefore, 
delicacy  forbids  us  to  speak  as  they  deserve.  Their 
powers  however,  and  the  peculiar  characters  of  their 
intellectual  excellence  are  so  wrell  known,  that,  their 
names  will  be  sufficient  to  speak  their  respective  eulo- 
gies. We  may  mention,  therefore,  Mr.  Madison,  the 
late  president  of  the  United  States;  Mr.  Marshall,  the 
chief  justice;  and  Mr.  Monroe,  now  the  president. 
What  will  the  reader  think  of  a  body,  in  which  men 
like  these  were  only  among  their  equals!  Yet  such  is 
the  fact;  for  there,  were  those  sages  of  other  days, 
Pendleton  and  Wythe;  there  was  seen  displayed,  the 
Spartan  vigour  and  compactness  of  George  Nicholas; 
and  there  shone  the  radiant  genius  and  sensibility  of 
Grayson;  the  Roman  energy  and  the  Attic  wit  of 
George  Mason  was  there;  and  there,  also,  the  classic- 
taste  and  harmony  of  Edmund  Randolph;  "  the  splendid 
conflagration"  of  the  high  minded  Innis;  and  the 
matchless  eloquence  of  the  immortal  Henry!* 


*  The  debates  and  proceedings  of  this  convention,  by  Mr.  David  Robert- 
son of  Petersburg,  have  passed  through  two  editions ;  yet  it  is  believed,  that 
their  circulation  has  been  principally  confined  to  Virginia ;  and  even  in  this 
state,  from  the  rapid  progress  of  our  population,  that  book  is  supposed  to  be 
in,  comparatively,  few  bands.    Hence  it  has  been  thought  proper  to  give  a 


264  SKETCHES  OP  THE 

It  was  not  until  the  4th,  that  the  preliminary  arrange- 
ments for  the  discussion  were  settled.  Mr.  Pendleton 
had  been  unanimously  elected  the  president  of  the  con- 
vention; but  it  having  been  determined  that  the  subject 
should  be  debated  in  committee  of  the  whole,  the  house 
on  that  day,  resolved  itself  into  committee,  and  the 
venerable  Mr.  Wythe  was  called  to  the  chair.  In  con- 
formity with  the  order  which  had  been  taken,  to  discuss 
the  constitution,  clause  by  clause,  the  clerk  now  read 
the  preamble  and  the  two  first  sections;  and  the  debate 
was  opened  by  Mr.  George  Nicholas.  He  confined  him- 
self strictly  to  the  sections  under  consideration,  and 
maintained  their  policy  with  great  cogency  of  argu- 
ment. Mr.  Henry  rose  next,  and  soon  demonstrated 
that  his  excursions  were  not  to  be  restrained  by  the 
rigour  of  rules.  Instead  of  proceeding  to  answer  Mr. 
Nicholas,  he  commenced  by  sounding  an  alarm  calcu- 
lated to  produce  a  most  powerful  impression.  The 
effect,  however,  will  be  entirely  lost  upon  the  reader, 
unless  he  shall  associate  with  the  speech,  which  I  am 
about  to  lay  before  him,  that  awful  solemnity  and  look 
of  fearful  portent,  by  which  Mr.  Henry  could  imply 


short  sketch  of  Mr.  Henry's  course  in  this  bod}".  It  ought  to  be  premised, 
however,  tbat  the  published  debates  have  been  said  by  those  who  attended 
the  convention,  to  present  but  an  imperfect  view  6f  the  discussions  of  that 
body.  In  relation  to  Mr.  Henry,  they  are  confessedly  imperfect ;  the  re- 
porter having  sometimes  dropped  him  in  those  passages,  in  which  the  reader 
would  be  most  anxious  to  follow  him.  From  the  skill  and  ability  of  the 
reporter,  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  substance  of  the  debates,  as  well  as 
their  general  course,  are  accurately  preserved.  The  work  is,  therefore,  a 
valuable  repository  of  the  arguments  by  which  the  constitution  was 
opposed  on  one  hand,  and  supported  on  the  other ;  but  it  must  have  been 
utterly  impossible  for  a  man,  who  possesses  the  sensibility  and  high  relish 
for  eloquence  which  distinguish  the  reporter,  not  to  have  been  so  far  tran- 
sported by  the  excursions  of  Mr.  Henry's  genius,  as  sometimes,  unconsciously. 
to  have  laid  down  his  pen. 


LIFE  OP  HENRY.  265 

even  more  than  he  expressed;  and  that  slow,  distinct, 
emphatic  enunciation,  by  which  he  never  failed  to  move 
the  souls  of  his  hearers. 

"  Mr.  Chairman — The  public  mind,  as  well  as  my 
own,  is  extremely  uneasy  at  the  proposed  change  of 
government.  Give  me  leave  to  form  one  of  the  number 
of  those  who  wish  to  be  thoroughly  acquainted  with 
the  reasons  of  this  perilous  and  uneasy  situation — and 
why  we  are  brought  hither  to  decide  on  this  great  na- 
tional question.  I  consider  myself  as  the  servant  of 
the  people  of  this  commonwealth — as  a  sentinel  over 
their  rights,  liberty,  and  happiness.  I  represent  their 
feelings  when  I  say,  that  they  are  exceedingly  uneasy, 
being  brought  from  that  state  of  full  security  which 
they  enjoyed,  to  the  present  delusive  appearance  of 
things.  A  year  ago,  the  minds  of  our  citizens  were  at 
perfect  repose.  Before  the  meeting  of  the  late  federal 
convention  at  Philadelphia,  a  general  peace  and  an 
universal  tranquillity  prevailed  in  this  country — but 
since  that  period,  they  are  exceedingly  uneasy  and  dis- 
quieted. When  I  wished  for  an  appointment  to  this 
convention,  my  mind  was  extremely  agitated  for  the 
situation  of  public  affairs.  I  conceive  the  republic  to 
be  in  extreme  danger.  If  our  situation  be  thus  uneasy, 
whence  has  arisen  this  fearful  jeopardy?  It  arises  from 
this  fatal  system — it  arises  from  a  proposal  to  change 
our  government — a  proposal  that  goes  to  the  utter  anni- 
hilation of  the  most  solemn  engagements  of  the  states — 
a  proposal  of  establishing  nine  states  into  a  confederacy, 
to  the  eventual  exclusion  of  four  states.  It  goes  to  the 
annihilation  of  those  solemn  treaties  we  have  formed 
with  foreign  nations.  The  present  circumstances  of 
France — the  good  offices  rendered  us  by  that  kingdom, 

Ll 


266  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

require  our  most  faithful  and  most  punctual  adherence 
to  our  treaty  with  her.  We  are  in  alliance  with  the 
Spaniards,  the  Dutch,  the  Prussians:  those  treaties 
bound  us  as  thirteen  states,  confederated  together.  Yet 
here  is  a  proposal  to  sever  that  confederacy.  Is  it  pos- 
sible that  we  shall  abandon  all  our  treaties  and  national 
engagements?  And  for  what?  I  expected  to  have 
heard  the  reasons  of  an  event,  so  unexpected  to  my 
mind  and  many  others.  Was  our  civil  polity  or  public 
justice  endangered  or  sapped?  Was  the  real  existence 
of  the  country  threatened — or  was  this  preceded  by  a 
mournful  progression  of  events?  This  proposal  of  alter- 
ing our  federal  government  is  of  a  most  alarming  nature: 
make  the  best  of  this  new  government — say  it  is  com- 
posed by  any  thing  but  inspiration — you  ought  to  be 
extremely  cautious,  watchful,  jealous  of  your  liberty; 
for  instead  of  securing  your  rights,  you  may  lose  them 
for  ever.  If  a  wrong  step  be  now  made,  the  republic 
may  be  lost  for  ever.  If  this  new  government  will  not 
come  up  to  the  expectation  of  the  people,  and  they 
should  be  disappointed,  their  liberty  will  be  lost,  and 
tyranny  must  and  will  arise.  I  repeat  it  again,  and  I 
beg  gentlemen  to  consider,  that  a  wrong  step  made  now 
will  plunge  us  into  misery,  and  our  republic  will  be  lost. 
It  will  be  necessary  for  this  convention  to  have  a  faith- 
ful historical  detail  of  the  facts  that  preceded  the  session 
of  the  federal  convention,  and  the  reasons  that  actuated 
its  members  in  proposing  an  entire  alteration  of  go- 
vernment, and  to  demonstrate  the  dangers  that  await- 
ed us:  if  they  were  of  such  awful  magnitude,  as  to 
warrant  a  proposal  so  extremely  perilous  as  this,  I  must 
assert,  that  this  convention  has  an  absolute  right  to  a 
thorough  discovery  of  every  circumstance  relative  to 
this  great  event.     And  here  I  would  make  this  inquiry 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  2Q1 

of  those  worthy  characters  who  composed  a  part  of 
the  late  federal  convention.     I  am  sure  they  were  fully 
impressed  with  the  necessity  of  forming  a  great  conso- 
lidated government,  instead  of  a  confederation.     That 
this  is  a  consolidated  government,  is  demonstrably  clear; 
and  the  danger  of  such  a  government  is  to  my  mind 
very  striking.     I  have  the  highest  veneration  for  those 
gentlemen;  but,  sir,  give  me  leave  to  demand,  what 
right  had  they  to  say,  we,  the  people?     My  political  cu- 
riosity, exclusive  of  my  anxious  solicitude  for  the  public 
welfare,  leads  me  to  ask,  who  authorized  them  to  speak 
the  language  of,  we,  the  people,  instead  of,  we,  the  states? 
States  are  the  characteristics,  and  the  soul  of  a  confe- 
deration.    If  the  states  be  not  the  agents  of  this  com- 
pact, it  must  be  one  great,  consolidated,  national  govern- 
ment of  the  people  of  all  the  states.     I  have  the  highest 
respect  for  those  gentlemen  who  formed  the  convention; 
and  were  some  of  them  not  here,  I  would  express  some 
testimonial  of  esteem  for  them.     America  had,  on  a 
former  occasion,  put  the  utmost  confidence  in  them;  a 
confidence  which  was  well  placed  ;  and  I  am  sure  sir, 
I  would  give  up  any  thing  to  them;  I  would  cheerfully 
confide  in  them  as  my  representatives.     But,  sir,  on 
this  great  occasion,  I  would  demand  the  cause  of  their 
conduct.     Even  from  that  illustrious  man,  who  saved  us 
by  his  valour,  I  would  have  a  reason  for  his  conduct — ■ 
that  liberty  which  he  has  given  us  by  his  valour,  tells  me 
to  ask  this  reason — and  sure  I  am,  were  he  here,  he 
would  give  us  that  reason:  but  there  are  other  gentle- 
men here,  who  can  give  us  this  information.     The  peo- 
ple gave  them  no  power  to  use  their  name.     That  they 
exceeded  their  power,  is  perfectly  clear.     It  is  not  mere 
curiosity  that  actuates  me — I  wish  to  hear  the  real, 
actual,  existing  danger,  which  should  lead  us  to  take 


268  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

those  steps  so  dangerous  in  my  conception.  Disorders 
have  arisen  in  other  parts  of  America;  but  here,  sir, 
no  dangers,  no  insurrection,  or  tumult,  has  happened — 
every  thing  has  been  calm  and  tranquil.  But,  notwith- 
standing this,  we  are  wandering  on  the  great  ocean  of 
human  affairs.  I  see  no  landmark  to  guide  us.  We 
are  running  we  know  not  whither.  Difference  in  opinion 
has  gone  to  a  degree  of  inflammatory  resentment,  in 
different  parts  of  the  country,  which  has  been  occa- 
sioned by  this  perilous  innovation.  The  federal  con- 
vention ought  to  have  amended  the  old  system — for  this 
purpose  they  were  solely  delegated:  the  object  of  their 
mission  extended  to  no  other  consideration.  You  must 
therefore  forgive  the  solicitation  of  one  unworthy  mem- 
ber, to  know  what  danger  could  have  arisen  under  the 
present  confederation,  and  what  are  the  causes  of  this 
proposal  to  change  our  government?" 

This  inquiry  was  answered  by  an  eloquent  speech 
from  Mr.  Randolph;  and  the  debate  passed  into  other 
hands;  until  on  the  next  day,  general  Lee,  in  reference 
to  Mr.  Henry's  opening  speech,  addressed  the  chair  as 
follows: 

"  Mr.  Chairman — I  feel  every  power  of  my  mind 
moved  by  the  language  of  the  honourable  gentleman, 
yesterday.  The  eclat  and  brilliancy  which  have  distin- 
guished that  gentleman,  the  honours  with  which  he  has 
been  dignified,  and  the  brilliant  talents  which  he  has  so 
often  displayed,  have  attracted  my  respect  and  attention. 
On  so  important  an  occasion,  and  before  so  respectable  a 
body,  I  expected  a  new  display  of  his  powers  of  oratory: 
but  instead  of  proceeding  to  investigate  the  merits  of 
the  new  plan  of  government,  the  ivorthy  character  in- 


LIFE    OF   HENRY. 


269 


formed  us  of  honors  which  he  felt,  of  apprehensions  in 
his  mind,  which  made  him  tremblingly  fearful  of  the 
fate  of  the  commonwealth.  Mr.  Chairman,  was  it  pro- 
per to  appeal  to  the  fear  of  this  house?  The  question 
before  us  belongs  to  the  judgment  of  this  house;  I  trust 
he  is  come  to  judge  and  not  to  alarm.  I  trust  that  he, 
and  every  other  gentleman  in  this  house,  comes  with  a 
firm  resolution,  coolly  and  calmly  to  examine,  and  fairly 
and  impartially  to  determine." 

In  the  further  progress  of  his  speech,  general  Lee 
again  said,  rather  tauntingly,  of  Mr.  Henry: — "  The 
gentleman  sat  down  as  he  began,  leaving  us  to  ruminate 
on  the  Jwrrors  with  which  he  opened." 

Mr.  Henry  rising  immediately  after  these  sarcastic 
remarks,  gave  a  striking  specimen  of  that  dignified  self- 
command,  and  that  strict  and  uniform  decorum,  by  which 
he  was  so  pre-eminently  distinguished  in  debate.     Far 
from  retorting  the  sarcasms  of  his  adversary,  he  seemed 
to  have  heard  nothing  but  the  compliments  with  which 
they  stood  connected,  and  rising  slowly  from  his  seat,  with 
a  countenance  expressive  of  unaffected  humility,  he 
began  with  the   following  modest   and   disqualifying 
exordium.     "  Mr.  Chairman — I  am  much  obliged  to 
the  very  worthy  gentleman  for  his  encomium.     I  wish 
I  was  possessed  of  talents,  or  possessed  of  any  thing, 
that  might  enable  me  to  elucidate  this  great  subject. 
I  own,  sir,  I  am  not  free  from  suspicion.     I  am  apt  to 
entertain  doubts.     I  rose  on  yesterday,  not  to  enter 
upon  the  discussion,  but  merely  to  ask  a  question  which 
had  arisen  in  my  own  mind.     When  I  asked  that  ques- 
tion, I  thought  the  meaning  of  my  interrogation  was 
obvious.     The  fate  of  America  may  depend  on  this 
question.    Have  they  said,  we,  tlie  states?  Have  they 


270  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

made  a  proposal  of  a  compact  between  states.  If  they 
had,  this  would  be  a  confederation;  it  is,  otherwise, 
most  clearly,  a  consolidated  government.  The  whole 
question  turns,  sir,  on  that  poor  little  thing;  the  ex- 
pression, we,  the  people,  instead  of,  the  states  of 
America." 

He  then  proceeded  to  set  forth,  in  terrible  array,  his 
various  objections  to  the  constitution;  not  confining 
himself  to  the  clauses  under  debate,  but  ranging  through 
the  whole  instrument,  and  passing  from  objection  to 
objection,  as  they  followed  each  other  in  his  mind. 
This  departure  from  the  rule  of  the  house,  although  at 
first  view  censurable,  was  insisted  upon  by  himself  and 
his  colleagues,  as  being  indispensable  to  a  just  exami- 
nation of  the  particular  clause  under  consideration; 
because  the  policy  or  impolicy  of  any  provision,  did  not 
always  depend  upon  itself  alone,  but  on  other  provisions 
with  which  it  stood  connected,  and  indeed,  upon  the 
whole  system  of  powers  and  checks  that  were  associated 
with  it  in  the  same  instrument,  and  thus  formed  only 
parts  of  one  entire  whole.     The  truth  of  this  position, 
in  relation  to  some  of  the  provisions,  could  not  be  justly 
denied;  and  a  departure  once  made  from  the  rigour  of 
the  rule,  the  debate  became  at  large,  on  every  part  of 
the  constitution;  the  disputants  at  every  stage,  looking 
forward  and  backward  throughout  the  whole  instru- 
ment, without  any  controul  other  than  their  own  dis- 
cretion.    Thus  freed  from  restraints,  under  which  his 
genius  was  at  all  times  impatient,  uncoupled  and  let 
loose  to  range  the  whole  field  at  pleasure,  Mr.  Henry 
seemed  to  have  recovered,  and  to  luxuriate  in  all  the 
powers  of  his  youth.    He  had,  indeed,  occasion  for  them 
all;  for  while  he  was  supported  by  only  three  effective 


LIFE    OF    HENRY.  271 

auxiliaries,  opposed  to  him  stood  a  phalanx,  most  formi- 
dable both  for  talents  and  weight  of  character;  and  of 
several  of  whom  it  might  be  said,  with  truth,  that  each 
was  "  in  himself  a  host;"  for  at  the  head  of  the  opposing 
ranks  stood  Mr.  Pendleton— Mr.  Wythe— Mr.  Madison 
—Mr.  Marshall— Mr.  Nicholas— Mr.  Randolph— Mr. 
Innis — Mr.  Henry  Lee — and  Mr.  Corbin.  Fearful 
odds!  and  such  as  called  upon  him  for  the  most  strenuous 
exertion  of  all  his  faculties.  Nor  did  he  sink  below 
the  occasion.  For  twenty  days,  during  which  this 
great  discussion  continued  without  intermission,  his 
efforts  were  sustained,  not  only  with  undiminished 
strength,  but  with  powers  which  seemed  to  gather  new 
force  from  every  exertion.  All  the  faculties  useful 
for  debate  were  found  united  in  him,  with  a  degree  of 
perfection,  in  which  they  are  rarely  seen  to  exist,  even 
separately,  in  different  individuals:  irony,  ridicule,  the 
purest  wit,  the  most  comic  humour,  exclamations  that 
made  the  soul  start,  the  most  affecting  pathos,  and  the 
most  sublime  apostrophes,  lent  their  aid  to  enforce  his 
reasoning,  and  to  put  to  flight  the  arguments  of  his 
adversaries. 

The  objection  that  the  constitution  substituted  a  con- 
solidated in  lieu  of  a  confederated  government,  and 
that  this  new  consolidated  government  threatened  the 
total  annihilation  of  the  state  sovereignties,  was  pressed 
by  him  with  most  masterly  power:  he  said  there  was  no 
necessity  for  a  change  of  government,  so  entire  and 
fundamental — and  no  inducement  to  it,  unless  it  was  to 
be  found  in  this  splendid  government,  which  we  were 
told  was  to  make  us  a  great  and  mighty  people.  "  We 
have  no  detail,"  said  he,  "  of  those  great  considerations, 
which,  in  my  opinion,  ought  to  have  abounded,  before 
we  should  recur  to  a  government  of  this  kind.     Here 


212  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

is  a  revolution  as  radical  as  that  which  separated  us 
from  Great  Britain.  It  is  as  radical,  if  in  this  transi- 
tion our  rights  and  privileges  are  endangered,  and  the 
sovereignty  of  the  states  be  relinquished:  and  cannot 
we  plainly  see,  that  this  is  actually  the  case?  The 
rights  of  conscience,  trial  by  jury,  liberty  of  the  press, 
all  your  immunities  and  franchises,  all  pretensions  to 
human  rights  and  privileges,  are  rendered  insecure,  if 
not  lost,  by  this  change  so  loudly  talked  of  by  some, 
and  so  inconsiderately  by  others.  Is  this  tame  relin- 
quishment of  rights  worthy  of  freemen?  Is  it  worthy 
of  that  manly  fortitude  that  ought  to  characterize  repub- 
licans? It  is  said  eight  states  have  adopted  this  plan:  I 
declare,  that  if  twelve  states  and  an  half  had  adopted 
it,  I  would  with  manly  firmness,  and  in  spite  of  an 
erring  world,  reject  it.  You  are  not  to  inquire  how 
your  trade  may  be  increased,  nor  how  you  are  to  be- 
come a  great  and  powerful  people,  but  how  your  liberties 
can  be  secured;  for  liberty  ought  to  be  the  direct  end 
of  your  government.  Is  it  necessary  for  your  liberty, 
that  you  should  abandon  those  great  rights  by  the  adop- 
tion of  this  system?  Is  the  relinquishment  of  the  trial 
by  jury,  and  the  liberty  of  the  press,  necessary  for  your 
liberty?  Will  the  abandonment  of  your  most  sacred 
rights  tend  to  the  security  of  your  liberty?  Liberty, 
the  greatest  of  all  earthly  blessings-1— give  us  that  pre- 
cious jewel,  and  you  may  take  every  thing  else!  But  I 
am  fearful  I  have  lived  long  enough  to  become  an  old 
fashioned  fellow.  Perhaps  an  invincible  attachment  to 
the  dearest  rights  of  man,  may,  in  these  refined,  enlight- 
ened days,  be  deemed  old  fashioned:  if  so,  I  am  con- 
tented to  be  so:  I  say,  the  time  has  been,  when  every 
pulse  of  my  heart  beat  for  American  liberty,  and 
which,  I  believe,  had  a  counterpart  in  the  breast  of 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  273 

every  true  American;  but  suspicions  have  gone  forth — 
suspicions  of  my  integrity — publicly  reported  that  my 
professions  are  not  real — twenty-three  years  ago  was  I 
supposed  a  traitor  to  my  country:  I  was  then  said  to  be 
a  bane  of  sedition,  because  I  supported  the  rights  of 
my  country:  I  may  be  thought  suspicious,  when  I  say 
our  privileges  and  rights  are  in  danger:  but  sir,  a  num- 
ber of  the  people  of  this  country  are  weak  enough  to 
think  these  things  are  too  true.  I  am  happy  to  find, 
that  the  gentleman  on  the  other  side  declares  they  are 
groundless:  but  sir,  suspicion  is  a  virtue,  as  long  as  its 
object  is  the  preservation  of  the  public  good,  and  as 
long  as  it  stays  within  proper  bounds:  should  it  fall  on 
me,  I  am  contented:  conscious  rectitude  is  a  powerful 
consolation:  I  trust  there  are  many  who  think  my  pro- 
fessions for  the  public  good  to  be  real.  Let  your  sus- 
picion look  to  both  sides:  there  are  many  on  the  other 
side,  who  possibly  may  have  been  persuaded  of  the 
necessity  of  these  measures,  which  I  conceive  to  be 
dangerous  to  your  liberty.  Guard  with  jealous  atten- 
tion, the  public  liberty.  Suspect  every  one  who  ap- 
proaches that  jewel.  Unfortunately,  nothing  will  pre- 
serve it  but  downright  force:  whenever  you  give  up  that 
force,  you  are  inevitably  ruined.  I  am  answered  by 
gentlemen,  that  though  I  might  speak  of  terrors,  yet 
the  fact  was,  that  we  were  surrounded  by  none  of  the 
dangers  I  apprehended.  I  conceive  this  new  govern- 
ment to  be  one  of  those  dangers:  it  has  produced  those 
horrors,  which  distress  many  of  our  best  citizens.  We 
are  come  hither  to  preserve  the  poor  commonwealth  of 
Virginia,  if  it  can  be  possibly  done:  something  must  be 
done  to  preserve  your  liberty  and  mine.  The  confede- 
ration, this  same  despised  government,  merits  in  my 

opinion,  the  highest  encomium:  it  carried  us  through  a 

m  m 


21 4>  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

long  and  dangerous  war:  it  rendered  us  victorious  in 
that  bloody  conflict  with  a  powerful  nation:  it  has 
secured  us  a  territory  greater  than  any  European  mo- 
narch possesses:  and  shall  a  government  which  has  been 
thus  strong  and  vigorous,  be  accused  of  imbecility,  and 
abandoned  for  want  of  energy?  Consider  what  you 
are  about  to  do,  before  you  part  with  this  government. 
Take  longer  time  in  reckoning  things:  revolutions  like 
this  have  happened  in  almost  every  country  in  Europe: 
similar  examples  are  to  be  found  in  ancient  Greece  and 
ancient  Rome:  instances  of  the  people  losing  their 
liberty  by  their  own  carelessness  and  the  ambition  of  a 
few.  We  are  cautioned  by  the  honourable  gentleman 
who  presides,  against  faction  and  turbulence:  I  acknow- 
ledge that  licentiousness  is  dangerous,  and  that  it  ought 
to  be  provided  against:  I  acknowledge  also,  the  new 
form  of  government  may  effectually  prevent  it:  yet  there 
is  another  thing  it  will  as  effectually  do:  it  will  oppress 
and  ruin  the  people.  There  are  sufficient  guards  placed 
against  faction  and  licentiousness:  for  when  power  is 
given  to  this  government  to  suppress  these,  or  for  any 
other  purpose,  the  language  it  assumes  is  clear,  express, 
and  unequivocal:  but  when  this  constitution  speaks  of 
privileges,  there  is  an  ambiguity,  sir,  a.  fatal  ambiguity, 
an  ambiguity  which  is  very  astonishing!" 

The  adoption  of  the  instrument  had  been  maintain- 
ed upon  the  ground  that  it  would  increase  our  mili- 
tary strength,  and  enable  us  to  resist  the  lawless  ambi- 
tion of  foreign  princes: — it  had  been  urged  too,  that  if 
the  convention  should  rise  without  adopting  the  instru- 
ment, disunion  and  anarchy  would  be  the  certain  conse- 
quences. In  answer  to  these  topics  he  said — "  Happy 
will  you  be,  if  you  miss  the  fate  of  those  nations,  who 
omitting  to  resist  their  oppressors,  or  negligently  suffer- 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  275 

ing  their  liberty  to  be  wrested  from  them,  have  groaned 
under  intolerable  despotism!  Most  of  the  human  race 
are  now  in  this  deplorable  condition.  And  those  na- 
tions who  have  gone  in  search  of  grandeur,  power, 
and  splendour,  have  also  fallen  a  sacrifice,  and  been 
the  victims  of  their  own  folly.  While  they  acquired 
those  visionary  blessings,  they  lost  their  freedom.  My 
great  objection  to  this  government  is,  that  it  does  not 
leave  us  the  means  of  defending  our  rights,  or  of  wag- 
ing war  against  tyrants.  It  is  urged  by  some  gentlemen, 
that  this  new  plan  will  bring  us  an  acquisition  of 
strength,  an  army,  and  the  militia  of  the  states.  This 
is  an  idea  extremely  ridiculous:  gentlemen  cannot  be 
in  earnest.  This  acquisition  will  trample  on  your  fallen 
liberty!  Let  my  beloved  Americans  guard  against  that 
fatal  lethargy  that  has  pervaded  the  universe.  Have 
we  the  means  of  resisting  disciplined  armies,  when  our 
only  defence,  the  militia,  is  put  into  the  hands  of  con- 
gress? The  honourable  gentleman  said,  that  great 
danger  would  ensue,  if  the  convention  rose  without 
adopting  this  system.  I  ask,  where  is  that  danger?  I 
see  none.  Other  gentlemen  have  told  us  within  these 
walls,  that  the  union  is  gone — or,  that  the  union  will  be 
gone.  Is  not  this  trifling  with  the  judgment  of  their  fel- 
low-citizens? Till  they  tell  us  the  ground  of  their  fears, 
I  will  consider  them  as  imaginary.  I  rose  to  make  in- 
quiry where  those  dangers  were;  they  could  make  no 
answer:  I  believe  I  never  shall  have  that  answer.  Is 
there  a  disposition  in  the  people  of  this  country  to  re- 
volt against  the  dominion  of  laws?  Has  there  been  a 
single  tumult  in  Virginia?  Have  not  the  people  of  Vir- 
ginia, when  labouring  under  the  severest  pressure  of 
accumulated  distresses,  manifested  the  most  cordial 
acquiescence  in  the  execution  of  the  laws?  What  could 


276  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

be  more  awful  than  their  unanimous  acquiescence  un- 
der general  distresses?  Is  there  any  revolution  in  Vir- 
ginia? Whither  is  the  sjnrit  of  America  gone?  Whither 
is  the  genius  of  America  fled?  It  ivas  but  yesterday 
when  our  enemies  marclied  in  triumph  through  our 
country.  Yet  the  people  of  this  country  could  not  be 
apj)alled  by  their  pompous  armaments:  they  stopped 
their  career,  and  victoriously  captured  them!  Where 
is  the  peril  now,  compared  to  that?  Some  minds  are 
agitated  by  foreign  alarms:  Happily  for  us,  there  is  no 
real  danger  from  Europe:  that  country  is  engaged  in 
more  arduous  business:  from  that  quarter  there  is  no 
cause  of  fear:  you  may  sleep  in  safety  for  ever  for  them. 
Where  is  the  danger?  If  sir,  there  was  any,  I  would 
recur  to  the  American  spirit  to  defend  us — that  spirit 
which  has  enabled  us  to  surmount  the  greatest  difficul- 
ties: to  that  illustrious  spirit  I  address  my  most  fervent 
prayer,  to  prevent  our  adopting  a  system  destructive  to 
liberty.  Let  not  gentlemen  be  told  that  it  is  not  safe  to 
reject  this  government.  Wherefore  is  it  not  safe?  We 
are  told  there  are  dangers;  but  those  dangers  are  ideal; 
they  cannot  be  demonstrated.  To  encourage  us  to 
adopt  it,  they  tell  us  that  there  is  a  plain  easy  way  of 
getting  amendments.  When  I  come  to  contemplate 
this  part,  I  suppose  that  I  am  mad,  or,  that  my  country- 
men are  so.  The  way  to  amendment,  is  in  my  con- 
ception shut.     Let  us  consider  this  plain,  easy  way." 

He  then  proceeds  to  demonstrate,  that  as  the  consti- 
tution required  the  concurrence  of  three-fourths  of  the 
states  to  any  amendment,  it  followed  that  six-tenths  of 
the  people,  in  four  of  the  smallest  states,  (not  containing 
collectively  one-tenth  part  of  the  population  of  the 
United  States)  would  have  it  in  their  power  to  defeat 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  277 

the  most  salutary  amendments;  and  then  asks,  "Is  this, 
sir,  an  easy  mode  of  securing  the  public  liberty?  It  is, 
sir,  a  most  fearful  situation,  when  the  most  contemptible 
minority  can  prevent  the  alteration  of  the  most  oppressive 
government:  for  it  may,  in  many  respects,  prove  to  be 
such.  Is  this  the  spirit  of  republicanism?  What,  sir, 
is  the  genius  of  democracy?  Let  me  read  that  clause  of 
the  bill  of  rights  of  Virginia,  which  relates  to  this :  3d 
Art.  ?  That  government  is,  or  ought  to  be,  instituted  for 
the  common  benefit,  protection,  and  security  of  the 
people,  nation,  or  community;  of  all  the  various  modes 
and  forms  of  government,  that  is  best  which  is  capable 
of  producing  the  greatest  degree  of  happiness  and 
safety,  and  is  most  effectually  secured  against  the  dan- 
ger of  mal-administration ;  and  that  whenever  any  govern- 
ment shall  be  found  inadequate,  or  contrary  to  these 
purposes,  a  majority  of  the  community  hath  an  indubi- 
table, unalienable,  and  indefeasible  right  to  reform, 
alter,  or  abolish  it,  in  such  manner  as  shall  be  judged 
most  conducive  to  the  public  weal/  This,  sir,  is4he 
language  of  democracy;  that  a  majority  of  the  community 
have  a  right  to  alter  their  government  when  found  to  be 
oppressive;  but  how  different  is  the  genius  of  your  new 
constitution  from  this?  How  different  from  the  senti- 
ments of  freemen,  that  a  contemptible  minority  can 
prevent  the  good  of  the  majority?  If  then,  gentlemen 
standing  on  this  ground,  are  come  to  that  point,  that 
they  are  willing  to  bind  themselves  and  their  posterity 
to  be  oppressed,  J  am  amazed,  and  inexpressibly 
astonished!  If  this  be  the  opinion  of  the  majority,  I 
must  submit;  but  to  me,  sir,  it  appears  perilous  and 
destructive;  I  cannot  help  thinking  so;  perhaps  it  may 
be  the  result  of  my  age;  these  may  be  feelings  natural 
to  a  man  of  my  years,  when  the  American  spirit  has 


278  SKETCHES    OF   THE 

left  him,  and  his  mental  powers,  like  the  members  of 
the  body,  are  decayed.  If,  sir,  amendments  are  left  to 
the  twentieth,  or  to  the  tenth  part  of  the  people  of 
America,  your  liberty  is  gone  for  ever.  We  have  heard 
that  there  is  a  great  deal  of  bribery  practised  in  the 
house  of  commons  in  England;  and  that  many  of  the 
members  raised  themselves  to  preferments  by  selling 
the  rights  of  the  people.  But,  sir,  the  tenth  part  of 
that  body  cannot  continue  oppressions  on  the  rest  of 
the  people.  English  liberty  is,  in  this  case,  on  a 
firmer  foundation  than  American  liberty.  It  will  be 
easily  contrived  to  procure  the  opposition  of  one- 
tenth  of  the  people  to  any  alteration,  however  judi- 
cious." 

Mr.  Pendleton  had  repelled  the  idea  of  danger  from 
the  adoption  of  the  constitution,  on  the  ground  of  the 
facility  with  which  the  people  could  recall  their  dele- 
gated powers  and  change  their  servants. — "  We  will 
assemble  in  convention,"  said  Mr.  Pendleton,  "  wholly 
recall  our  delegated  powers,  or  reform  them  so  as  to 
prevent  such  abuse,  and  punish  our  servants."  In 
reply  to  this,  Mr.  Henry  said — "  The  honourable  gen- 
tleman who  presides,  told  us,  that  to  prevent  abuses  in 
our  government,  we  will  assemble  in  convention,  recall 
our  delegated  powers,  and  punish  our  servants  for 
abusing  the  trust  reposed  in  them.  Oh,  sir,  we  should 
have  fine  times  indeed,  if  to  punish  tyrants,  it  were  only 
necessary  to  assemble  the  people!  Your  arms,  wherewith 
vou  could  defend  yourselves,  are  gone!  and  you  have  no 
longer  an  aristocratic al,  no  longer  a  democratical  spirit. 
Did  you  ever  read  of  any  revolution  in  any  nation, 
brought  about  by  the  punishment  of  those  in  power, 
inflicted  by  those  who  had  no  power  at  all?  You  read 


LIFE    OP   HENRY.  279 

of  a  riot  act  in  a  country  which  is  called  one  of  the 
freest  in  the  world,  where  a  few  neighbours  cannot 
assemble,  without  the  risk  of  being  shot  by  a  hired 
soldiery,  the  engines  of  despotism.  We  may  see  such 
an  act  in  America.  A  standing  army  we  shall  have 
also,  to  execute  the  execrable  commands  of  tyranny: 
and  how  are  you  to  punish  them?  Will  you  order  them 
to  be  punislied?  Who  shall  obey  these  orders?  Will  your 
mace-bearer  be  a  match  for  a  disciplined  regiment?  In 
what  situation  are  we  to  be?  The  clause  before  you 
gives  a  power  of  direct  taxation,  unbounded  and  un- 
limited; exclusive  power  of  legislation,  in  all  cases 
whatsoever,  for  ten  miles  square;  and  over  all  places 
purchased  for  the  erection  of  forts,  magazines,  arsenals, 
dock  yards,  fyc.  What  resistance  could  be  made?  The 
attempt  would  be  madness.  You  will  find  all  the 
strength  of  this  country  in  the  hands  of  your  enemies; 
those  garrisons  will  naturally  be  the  strongest  places 
in  the  country.  Your  militia  is  given  up  to  congress 
also,  in  another  part  of  this  plan;  they  will,  therefore, 
act  as  they  think  proper;  all  power  will  be  in  their  own 
possession;  you  cannot  force  them  to  receive  their 
punishment" 

He  continued  to  ridicule  very  successfully  the  allur- 
ing idea  of  the  expected  splendour  of  the  new  govern- 
ment, and  the  imaginary  checks  and  balances  which 
were  said  to  exist  in  this  constitution:  "  If  we  admit," 
said  he,  "  this  consolidated  government,  it  will  be  be- 
cause we  like  a  great  splendid  one.  Some  way  or 
other  we  must  be  a  great  and  mighty  empire;  we  must 
have  an  army,  and  a  navy,  and  a  number  of  things! 
When  the  American  spirit  was  in  its  youth,  the  language 
of  America  was  different:  liberty,  sir,  was  then  the  pri- 


280  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

mary  object."    And  again:   "  This  constitution  is  said 
to  have  beautiful  features;  but  when  I  come  to  examine 
these  features,  sir,  they  appear  to  me  horridly  fright- 
ful! among  other  deformities,  it  has  an  awful  squinting ; 
it  squints  towards  monarchy!    And  does  not  this  raise 
indignation  in  the  heart  of  every  true  American?  Your 
president  may  easily  become  king;  your  senate  is  so 
imperfectly  constructed,  that  your  dearest  rights  may 
be  sacrificed  by  what  may  be  a  small  minority;  and  a 
very  small  minority  may  continue,  for  ever,  unchange- 
able,   this   government,    although  horridly  defective; 
where  are  your  checks  in  this  government?    Your 
strong  holds  will  be  in  the  hands  of  your  enemies;  it  is 
on  a  supposition  that  your  American  governors  shall 
be  honest,  that  all  the  good  qualities  of  this  government 
are  founded;  but  its  defective  and  imperfect  construc- 
tion, puts  it  in  their  power  to  perpetrate  the  worst  of 
mischiefs,  should  they  be  bad  men;  and,  sir,  would  not 
all  the  world,  from  the  eastern  to  the  western  hemi- 
sphere, blame  our  distracted  folly  in  resting  our  rights 
upon  tlie  contingency  of  our  rulers  being  good  or  bad? 
Show  me  that  age  and  country,  where  the  rights  and 
liberties  of  the  people  were  placed  on  the  sole  chance 
of  their  rulers  being  good  men,  without  a  consequent 
loss  of  liberty?     I  say,  that  the  loss  of  that  dearest  pri- 
vilege has  ever  followed,  with  absolute  certainty,  every 
such  mad  attempt.     If  your  American  chief  be  a  man 
of  ambition  and  abilities,  how  easy  is  it  for  him  to  ren- 
der himself  absolute!     Tfie  army  is  in  his  hands;  and, 
if  he  be  a  man  of  address,  it  will  be  attached  to  him; 
and  it  will  be  the  subject  of  long  meditation  with  him  to 
seize  the  first  auspicious  moment  to  accomplish  his  de- 
sign; and,  sir,  will  the  American  spirit,  solely,  relieve 
you  when  this  happens?    I  would  rather  infinitely,  and 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  281 

I  am  sure  most  of  this  convention  are  of  the  same 
opinion,  have  a  king,  lords,  and  commons,  than  a  go- 
vernment so  replete  with  such  insupportable  evils.  If 
we  make  a  king,  we  may  prescribe  the  rules  by  which 
he  shall  rule  his  people,  and  interpose  such  checks  as 
shall  prevent  him  from  infringing  them:  but  the  presi- 
dent in  tJie  field,  at  the  head  of  his  army,  can  prescribe 
the  terms  on  which  he  shall  reign  master,  so  far  that  it 
ivill  puzzle  any  American  ever  to  get  his  neck  from 
under  the  galling  yoke.  I  cannot,  with  patience,  think 
of  this  idea.  If  ever  he  violates  the  laws,  one  of  two 
things  will  happen:  he  will  come  at  the  head  of  his 
army  to  carry  every  thing  before  him;  or  he  will  give 
bail,  or  do  what  Mr.  Chief  Justice  will  order  him.  If 
he  be  guilty,  will  not  the  recollection  of  his  crimes 
teach  him  to  make  one  bold  push  for  the  American 
throne?  Will  not  the  immense  difference  between 
being  master  of  every  thing,  and  being  ignominiously 
tried  and  punished,  powerfully  excite  him  to  make  this 
bold  push?  But,  sir,  where  is  the  existing  force  to  pun- 
ish him?  Can  he  not  at  the  head  of  his  army,  beat 
down  every  opposition?  Away  with  your  president;  we 
shall  have  a  king:  the  army  will  salute  him  monarch; 
your  militia  will  leave  you,  and  assist  in  making  him 
king,  and  fight  against  you:  and  what  have  you  to  op- 
pose this  force?  What  will  then  become  of  you  and 
your  rights?  Will  not  absolute  despotism  ensue?" 
[Here  Mr.  Henry  strongly  and  pathetically  expatiated 
on  the  probability  of  the  president's  enslaving  America, 
and  tJie  horrid  consequences  that  must  remit.] 

After  the  frank  admission  of  the  reporter,  exhibited 
by  the  words  contained  within  those  brackets,  that  he 
had  not  attempted  to  follow  Mr.  Henry  in  this  pathetic 
excursion,  the  reader  will  perceive,  that  it  would  be 

N  H 


282  SKETCHES  OP  THE 

doing  injustice  lo  the  memory  of  that  eminent  man,  to 
multiply  extracts  from  this  book,  as  specimens  of  his 
eloquence.  The  stenographer  who  should  be  able  to 
take  down  Mr.  Henry's  speeches,  word  for  word,  must 
have  other  qualities,  beside  the  perfect  mastery  of  his 
art:  he  must  have  the  perfect  mastery  of  himself,  and 
be  able,  for  the  moment,  to  play  the  mere  automaton: 
for  without  such  self-command,  no  man  who  had  a  hu- 
man heart  in  his  bosom,  could  listen  to  his  startling 
exclamations,  or  horror-breathing  tones,  without  keep- 
ing his  eyes  immoveably  rivetted  upon  the  speaker.  His 
dominion  over  his  hearers  was  so  absolute,  that  it  was 
idle  to  think  of  resisting  him ;  you  would  as  soon  think 
of  resisting  the  lightning  of  heaven.  The  very  tone  of 
voice,  in  which  he  would  address  the  chairman,  when 
he  felt  the  inspiration  of  his  genius  rising — "  Mr. 
Chairman!" — and  the  awful  pause  which  followed  this 
call — fixed  upon  him  at  once  every  eye  in  the  assem- 
bly: and  then  his  own  rapt  countenance! — those  eyes 
which  seemed  to  beam  with  light  from  another  world, 
and  under  whose  fiery  glance  the  crest  of  the  proudest 
adversary  fell!  his  majestic  attitudes,  and  that  bold, 
strong,  and  varied  action,  which  spoke  forth  with  so 
much  power,  the  energies  of  his  own  great  spirit,  ren- 
dered his  person  a  spectacle  so  sublime  and  so  awfully 
interesting,  that  to  look  in  any  other  direction  when  the 
spell  was  upon  him,  was  not  to  be  expected  from  any 
man  who  had  eyes  to  see  and  ears  to  hear.  Little  cause 
have  we  therefore  to  wonder  or  to  complain,  that  a  gen- 
tleman of  Mr.  Robertson's  lively  admiration  of  genius, 
and  of  his  quick  and  kindling  sensibility,  was  some- 
times bedimmed  by  his  own  tears,  and  at  others,  torn 
from  his  task  by  those  master  flights,  which  rushed  like 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  283 

a  mighty  whirlwind  from  the  earth,  and  carried  up 
every  thing  in  their  vortex. 

The  chief  objections  taken  to  the  constitution  are 
reducible  to  the  following  heads. 

I.  That  it  was  a  consolidated,  instead  of  a  confede- 
rated government:  that  in  making  it  so,  the  delegates 
at  Philadelphia  had  transcended  the  limits  of  their  com- 
mission: changed  fundamentally  the  relations  which  the 
states  had  chosen  to  bear  to  each  other:  annihilated 
their  respective  sovereignties:  destroyed  the  barriers 
which  divided  them:  and  converted  the  whole  into  one 
solid  empire.  To  this  leading  objection,  almost  all  the 
rest  had  reference,  and  were  urged  principally  with  the 
view  to  illustrate  and  enforce  it. 

II.  The  vast  and  alarming  array  of  specific  powers 
given  to  the  general  government,  and  the  wide  door 
opened  for  an  unlimited  extension  of  those  powers,  by 
the  clauses  which  authorized  congress  to  pass  all  laws 
necessary  to  carry  the  given  powers  into  effect.  It  was 
urged,  that  this  clause  rendered  the  previous  specifica- 
tion of  powers  an  idle  illusion:  since  by  the  force  of  con- 
struction arising  from  that  clause,  congress  might  easily 
do  any  thing  and  every  thing  it  chose,  under  the  pre- 
tence of  giving  effect  to  some  specified  power. 

III.  The  unlimited  power  of  taxation  of  all  kinds: 
the  states  were  no  longer  to  be  required  in  their  federa- 
tive characters,  to  contribute  their  respective  propor- 
tions towards  the  expenses  and  engagements  of  the 
general  government:  but  congress  were  authorized  to 
go  directly  to  the  pockets  of  the  people,  and  sweep  from 
them,  en  masse,  from  north  to  south,  whatever  portion  of 
the  earnings  of  the  industrious  poor,  the  rapacity  of  the 
general  government  or  their  schemes  of  ambitious  gran- 
deur might  suggest.  It  was  contended  that  such  a  power 


284  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

could  not  be  exercised,  without  just  complaint,  over  a 
country  so  extensive,  and  so  diversified  in  its  produc- 
tions and  the  pursuits  of  its  people:  that  it  was  impos- 
sible to  select  any  subject  of  general  taxation  which 
would  not  operate  unequally  on  the  different  sections 
of  the  union,  produce  discontent  and  heart  burnings 
among  the  people,  and  most  probably  terminate  in  open 
resistance  to  the  laws:  that  the  representatives  in  con- 
gress were  too  few  to  carry  with  them  a  knowledge  of 
the  wants  and  capacities  of  the  people  in  the  different 
parts  of  a  large  state:  and  that  the  representation  could 
not  be  made  full  enough  to  attain  that  object,  without 
becoming  oppressively  expensive  to  the  country:  that 
hence  taxation  ought  to  be  left  to  the  states  themselves, 
w  hose  representation  was  full,  who  best  knew  the  habits 
and  circumstances  of  their  constituents,  and  on  what 
subjects  a  tax  could  be  most  conveniently  laid:  Mr. 
Henry  said  that  he  was  willing  to  grant  this  power  con- 
ditionally; that  is,  upon  the  failure  of  the  states  to  com- 
ply with  requisitions  from  congress:  but  that  the  abso- 
lute and  unconditional  grant  of  it  in  the  first  instance, 
filled  his  mind  with  the  most  awful  anticipations.  It 
was  resolved,  he  saw  clearly,  that  we  must  be  a  great  and 
splendid  people:  and  that  in  order  to  be  so,  immense 
revenues  must  be  raised  from  the  people:  the  people 
were  to  be  bowed  down  under  the  load  of  their  taxes, 
direct  and  indirect:  and  a  swarm  of  federal  tax  gatherers 
were  to  cover  this  land,  to  blight  every  blade  of  grass, 
and  every  leaf  of  vegetation,  and  consume  its  produc- 
tions for  the  enrichment  of  themselves  and  their  mas- 
ters: it  was  not  contended,  he  supposed,  but  that  the 
state  legislatures  also,  might  impose  taxes  for  their  own 
internal  purposes;  thus  the  people  were  to  be  doubly 
oppressed,  and  between  the  state  sheriffs  and  the  federal 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  28b 

sheriffs,  to  be  ground  to  dust:  on  this  subject  lie  drew 
such  a  vivid  and  affecting  picture  of  these  officers,  en- 
tering in  succession  the  cabin  of  the  broken-hearted 
peasant,  and  the  last  one  rifling  the  poor  remains  which 
the  iirst  had  left,  as  is  said  to  have  drawn  tears  from 
every  eye. 

IV.  The  power  of  raising  armies  and  building  navies, 
and  still  more  emphatically,  the  controul  given  to  the  ge- 
neral government  over  the  militia  of  the  states,  was  most 
strenuously  opposed.  The  power  thus  given,  was  a  part 
of  the  means  of  that  aggrandizement  which  was  obvi- 
ously meditated,  and  there  could  be  no  doubt  that  it  would 
be  exercised:  so  that  this  republic,  whose  best  policy 
was  peace,  was  to  be  saddled  with  the  expense  of  main- 
taining standing  armies  and  navies,  useless  for  any  other 
purpose  than  to  insult  her  citizens,  to  afford  a  pretext 
for  increased  taxes,  and  an  augmented  public  debt,  and 
finally  to  subvert  the  liberties  of  her  people:  her  militia 
too,  her  last  remaining  defence,  was  gone.  "  Con- 
gress/' said  Mr.  Henry,  "  by  the  power  of  taxation — 
by  that  of  raising  an  army  and  navy — and  by  their  con- 
troul over  the  militia — have  the  sword  in  the  one  hand, 
and  the  purse  in  the  other.  Shall  we  be  safe  without 
either?  Congress  have  an  unlimited  power  over  both; 
they  are  entirely  given  up  by  us.  Let  him  (Mr.  Madi- 
son) candidly  tell  me,  where  and  when  did  freedom 
exist,  when  the  sword  and  purse  were  given  up  from 
the  people?  Unless  a  miracle  in  human  affairs  shall 
interpose,  no  nation  ever  did  or  ever  can  retain  its 
liberty,  after  the  loss  of  the  sword  and  the  purse/' 

The  unlimited  controul  over  the  militia  was  vehe- 
mently opposed,  on  the  ground,  that  the  marching  militia 
from  distant  states,  to  quell  insurrection,  and  repel  in- 
vasions, and  keeping  the  free  yeomanry  of  the  country 


2Sd  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

under  the  lash  of  martial  law,  would  in  the  first  in- 
stance, produce  an  effect  extremely  inimical  to  the 
peace  and  harmony  of  the  union;  and  in  the  next,  ha- 
rass the  agricultural  body  of  the  people  so  much,  as  to 
reconcile  them,  as  a  less  evil  to  that  curse  of  nations, 
and  bane  of  freedom,  a  standing  army: — and  secondly, 
this  power  was  opposed,  on  the  ground,  that  congress, 
under  the  boundless  charter  of  constructive  power 
which  it  possessed,  might  transfer  to  the  president  the 
power  of  calling  forth  the  militia,  and  thus  enable  him 
to  disarm  all  opposition  to  his  schemes. 

V.  The  several  clauses  providing  for  the  federal  judi- 
ciary were  objected  to,  on  the  ground  of  the  clashing 
jurisdictions  of  the  state  and  federal  courts;  and  second- 
ly, because  infinite  power  was  given  to  congress  to  mul- 
tiply inferior  federal  courts,  at  pleasure:  a  power  which 
they  would  not  fail  to  exercise,  in  order  to  swell  the 
patronage  of  the  president,  to  their  own  emolument;  and 
thus  enable  him  to  reward  their  devotion  to  his  views, 
by  bestowing  on  them  and  their  dependents,  those  offi- 
ces which  they  had  themselves  created. 

VI.  It  was  contended  that  the  trial  by  jury  was  gone 
in  civil  cases,  by  that  clause  which  gives  to  the  supreme 
court  appellate  power  over  the  law  and  the  fact  in  every 
case:  and  which  thereby  enabled  that  tribunal  to  anni- 
hilate both  the  verdict  and  judgment  of  the  inferior 
courts:  and  that  in  criminal  cases  also,  the  trial  by  jury 
was  worse  than  gone,  because  it  was  admitted,  that  the 
common  law  which  alone  gave  the  challenge  for  favour 
would  not  be  in  force,  as  to  the  federal  courts:  and 
hence,  a  jury  might,  in  every  instance,  be  packed  to  suit 
the  purposes  of  the  prosecution. 

VII.  The  authority  of  the  president  to  take  the  com- 
mand of  the  armies  of  the  United  States,  in  person,  was 


LIFE  OP  HENRY.  287 

warmly  resisted:  on  the  ground,  that  if  he  were  a  military 
character,  and  a  man  of  address,  he  might  easily  con- 
vert them  into  an  engine  for  the  worst  of  purposes. 

VIII.  The  cession  of  the  whole  treaty-making  power 
to  the  president  and  senate,  was  considered  as  one  of 
the  most  formidable  features  in  the  instrument:  in  as 
much  as  it  put  it  in  the  power  of  the  president  and  any 
ten  senators,  who  might  represent  the  five  smallest 
states,  to  enter  into  the  most  ruinous  foreign  engage- 
ments, and  even  to  cede  away  by  treaty,  any  portion  of 
the  territory  of  the  larger  states:  it  was  insisted,  that  the 
lower  house,  who  were  the  immediate  representatives 
of  the  people,  instead  of  being  excluded  as  they  were 
by  the  constitution  from  all  participation  in  the  treaty- 
making  power,  ought  at  least,  to  be  consulted,  if  not 
to  have  the  principal  agency  in  so  interesting  a  na- 
tional act. 

IX.  The  immense  patronage  of  the  president  was 
objected  to:  because  it  placed  in  his  hands  the  means 
of  corrupting  the  congress,  the  navy,  and  army,  and  of 
distributing,  moreover,  throughout  the  society,  a  band 
of  retainers  in  the  shape  of  judges,  revenue  officers,  and 
tax  gatherers,  which  would  render  him  irresistible  in 
any  scheme  of  ambition  that  he  might  meditate  against 
the  liberties  of  his  country. 

X.  The  irresponsibility  of  the  whole  gang  of  federal 
officers  (as  they  were  called)  was  objected  to:  there  was, 
indeed,  in  some  instances,  a  power  of  impeachment  pre- 
tended to  be  given,  but  it  was  mere  sham  and  mockery; 
since  instead  of  being  tried  by  a  tribunal,  zealous  and 
interested  to  bring  them  to  justice,  they  were  to  try 
each  other  for  offences,  in  which,  probably,  they  were 
all  mutually  implicated. 


288  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

XI.  It  was  insisted  that  if  we  must  adopt  a  constitu- 
tion, ceding  away  such  vast  powers,  express  and  im- 
plied, and  so  fraught  with  danger  to  the  liberties  of  the 
people,  it  ought  at  least  to  be  guarded  by  a  bill  of  rights: 
that  in  all  free  governments,  and  in  the  estimation  of  all 
men  attached  to  liberty,  there  were  certain  rights  un- 
alienable— imprescriptible — and  of  so  sacred  a  charac- 
ter, that  they  could  not  be  guarded  with  too  much  cau- 
tion: among  these  were  the  liberty  of  speech  and  of 
the  press — what  security  had  we,  that  even  these  sacred 
privileges  would  not  be  invaded?  Congress  might  think  it 
necessary,  in  order  to  carry  into  effect  the  given  powers, 
to  silence  the  clamours  and  censures  of  the  people;  and 
if  they  meditated  views  of  lawless  ambition,  they  cer- 
tainly will  so  think:  what  then  would  become  of  the 
liberty  of  speech  and  of  the  press? 

Several  objections  of  a  minor  character  were  urged; 
such  as, 

1 .  That  the  ambiguity  with  which  the  direction  for 
publishing  the  proceedings  of  congress  was  expressed 
("  from  time  to  time")  put  it  in  their  power  to  keep  the 
people  in  utter  ignorance  of  their  proceedings;  and  thus, 
to  seize  the  public  liberties  "  by  ambuscade." 

2.  That  the  IXth  section  of  the  I.  article,  professing 
to  set  out  restrictions  upon  the  power  of  congress,  gave 
them  by  irresistible  implication,  the  sovereign  power 
over  all  subjects  not  excepted,  and  thus  enlarged  their 
constructive  powers,  ad  infinitum. 

3.  That  congress  had  the  power  of  involving  the 
southern  states  in  all  the  horrors  which  would  result 
from  a  total  emancipation  of  their  slaves;  and  that  the 
northern  states,  uninterested  in  the  consequences  of 
such  an  act,  had  a  controuling  majority,  which  possessed 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  '289 

the  power,  and  would  not  probably  want  the  inclination, 
to  effect  it. 

4.  That  the  pay  of  the  members,  was  by  the  constitu- 
tion to  be  fixed  by  themselves,  without  limitation  or 
restraint.  "  They  may  therefore,"  said  Mr.  Henry, 
"  indulge  themselves  in  the  fullest  extent.  They  will 
make  their  compensation  as  high  as  they  please.  I  sup- 
pose, if  they  be  good  men,  their  own  delicacy  will  lead 
them  to  be  satisfied  with  moderate  salaries.  But  there  is 
no  security  for  this,  should  they  be  otherwise  inclined." 

These  objections,  and  many  others  which  it  were 
tedious  to  enumerate,  were  pressed  upon  the  house  day 
after  day,  with  all  the  powers  of  reasoning  and  of  elo- 
quence :  and  where  argument  and  declamation  were  found 
unavailing,  the  force  of  ridicule  was  freely  resorted  to. 
Thus,  in  relation  to  the  objection  of  consolidation,  Mr. 
Madison  had  said,  "  There  are  a  number  of  opinions  as 
to  the  nature  of  the  government;  but  the  principal  ques- 
tion is,  whether  it  be  a  federal  or  consolidated  govern- 
ment. In  order  to  judge  properly  of  the  question  before 
us,  we  must  consider  it  minutely  in  its  principal  parts. 
I  conceive  myself,  that  it  is  of  a  mixed  nature:— it  is, 
in  a  manner,  unprecedented:  we  cannot  find  one  ex- 
press  example  in  the  experience  of  the  world: — it 
stands  by  itself.  In  some  respects,  it  is  a  government 
of  a  federal  nature;  in  others,  it  is  of  a  consolidated 
nature."  He  then  proceeds  to  point  out  and  discrimi- 
nate its  federal  from  its  national  features.  Mr.  Corbin. 
on  the  same  side,  expressed  himself  satisfied  with  Mr. 
Madison's  definition  of  the  instrument;  but  begged 
leave  to  call  it  by  another  name,  viz.  "  a  representative 
federal  government,  as  contradistinguished  from  a  con- 
federacy." 

Mr.  Henry,  in  replying  to  these  gentlemen,  says — 

oo 


290  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

"  This  government  is  so  new,  it  wants  a  name!  I  wish 
its  other  novelties  were  as  harmless  as  this.  We  are  told, 
however,  that  collectively  taken,  it  is  witlwut  an  exam- 
ple!— that  it  is  national  in  this  part,  and  federal  in  that 
part,  &c.  We  may  be  amused  if  we  please,  by  a  treatise 
of  political  anatomy.  In  the  brain,  it  is  national:  the 
stamina  are  federal — some  limbs  are  federal,  others 
national.  The  senators  are  voted  for  by  the  state 
legislatures — so  far  it  is  federal.  Individuals  choose 
the  members  of  the  first  branch — here  it  is  national.  It 
is  federal  in  conferring  general  powers;  but  national  in 
retaining  them.  It  is  not  to  be  supported  by  the  states — 
the  pockets  of  individuals  are  to  be  searched  for  its 
maintenance.  What  signifies  it  to  me,  that  you  have 
the  most  curious  anatomical  description  of  it  in  its  crea- 
tion? To  all  the  common  purposes  of  legislation,  it  is  a 
great  consolidation  of  government.  You  are  not  to  have 
the  right  to  legislate  in  any  but  trivial  cases:  you  are 
not  to  touch  private  contracts:  you  are  not  to  have  the 
right  of  having  armies,  in  your  own  defence:  you  can- 
not be  trusted  with  dealing  out  justice  between  man  and 
man.  What  shall  the.  states  have  to  do?  Take  care  of 
the  poor — repair  and  make  highways — erect  bridges — 
and  so  on,  and  so  on!  Abolish  the  state  legislatures  at 
once.  What  purposes  should  they  be  continued  for? 
Our  legislature  will  indeed  be  a  ludicrous  spectacle — 
180  men,  marching  in  solemn  farcical  procession,  exhi- 
biting a  mournful  proof  of  the  lost  liberty  of  their  coun- 
try, without  the  power  of  restoring  it.  But  sir,  we  have 
the  consolation,  that  it  is  a  mixed  government!  that  is, 
it  may  work  sorely  in  your  neck;  but  you  will  have  some 
comfort  by  saying,  that  it  was  a  federal  government  in 
its  origin!" 

Notwithstanding  this  ridicule  however,  thrown  on 
some  of  their  arguments,  Mr.  Henry  did  not  fail,  on 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  291 

every  proper  occasion,  to  do  justice  to  the  great  abilities 
and  merits  of  his  adversaries.  To  the  eloquence  of  col. 
Innis  he  paid  a  memorable  tribute;  and  in  one  short 
sentence,  sketched  a  picture  of  it  so  vivid,  and  so  faith- 
ful, that  it  would  be  injustice  to  both  gentlemen  not  to 
give  it  a  place: — "  That  honourable  gentleman  is  en- 
dowed with  great  eloquence — eloquence  splendid,  mag- 
nificent, and  sufficient  to  shake  the  human  mind!"  No 
circumlocution  could  have  described  with  half  the  spirit 
and  truth,  that  rare  union  of  pomp  and  power,  which 
distinguished  col.  Innis;  whose  car  of  triumph  was 
always  a  chariot  of  war;  pugnce  vel  pompw,  pariter 
aptus. 

One  of  the  most  singular  instances  on  record  of  the 
fallacy  of  the  human  memory,  occurred  in  the  course 
of  these  debates:  this  was  in  relation  to  the  case  of 
Josiah  Philips,  which  has  been  already  mentioned.  Mr. 
Randolph,  in  answer  to  Mr.  Henry's  panegyrics  on  the 
constitution  of  the  state  of  Virginia,  brought  forward 
that  case  in  the  following  terms: — "  There  is  one  ex- 
ample of  this  violation  (of  the  state  constitution)  in  Vir- 
ginia, of  a  most  striking  and  shocking  nature, — an  ex- 
ample so  horrid,  that  if  I  conceived  my  country  would 
passively  permit  a  repetition  of  it,  dear  as  it  is  to  me,  I 
would  seek  means  of  expatriating  myself  from  it.  A 
man  who  was  then  a  citizen,  was  deprived  of  his  life, 
thus: — from  a  mere  reliance  on  general  reports,  a  gen- 
tleman in  the  house  of  delegates  informed  the  house,  that 
a  certain  man  (Josiah  Philips)  had  committed  several 
crimes,  and  was  running  at  large  perpetrating  other 
crimes;  he  therefore,  moved  for  leave  to  attaint  him;  he 
obtained  that  leave  instantly;  no  sooner  did  he  obtain 
it,  than  he  drew  from  his  pocket,  a  bill  ready  ivritten  for 
that  effect;  it  was  read  three  times  in  one  day,  and  car- 


292  SKETCHES    OF   THE 

ried  to  the  senate;  I  will  not  say  that  it  passed  the  same 
day  through  the  senate;  but  he  was  attainted  very 
speedily  and  precipitately,  without  any  proof  better  than 
vague  reports!  Without  being  confronted  with  his  ac- 
cusers and  witnesses;  witlwut  the  privilege  of  calling 
for  evidence  in  his  behalf,  he  was  sentenced  to  death,  and 
was  afterwards  actually  executed.  Was  this  arbitrary 
deprivation  of  life,  the  dearest  gift  of  God  to  man,  con- 
sistent with  the  genius  of  a  republican  government?  Is 
this  compatible  with  the  spirit  of  freedom?  This  sir, 
has  made  the  deepest  impression  in  my  heart,  and  I 
cannot  contemplate  it  without  horror."  Now  the  reader, 
by  adverting  to  the  statement  which  has  been  already 
given  of  Philip's  case,  and  which  is  founded  on  record, 
will  find  that  there  is  not  one  word  of  this  eloquent  in- 
vective that  is  consistent  with  the  facts.  What  makes 
the  case  still  more  strange  is,  that  Mr.  Randolph,  at  the 
happening  of  the  occurrence  to  which  he  alludes,  held 
the  double  office  of  clerk  of  the  house  of  delegates,  and 
attorney  general  of  the  commonwealth;  in  the  first 
character,  he  had  only  ten  years  before,  been  officially 
informed,  that  the  bill  of  attainder  had  not  been  found- 
ed on  report,  but  on  a  communication  of  tlie  governor 
enclosing  the  letter  of  the  commanding  officer  of  the 
militia  in  the  quarter  which  was  the  theatre  of  Philips' 
ravages;  that  that  letter  had  been  in  due  form  commit- 
ted to  the  whole  house  on  the  state  of  the  commonwealth, 
whose  resolutions  led  to  the  bill  in  question,  and  that  the 
bill,  instead  of  being  read  three  times  in  one  day,  had 
been  regularly,  and  according  to  the  forms  of  the  house, 
read  on  three  several  days;  while  in  his  character 
of  attorney  general,  he  had  himself  indicted  and  pro- 
secuted Philips  for  highway  robbery — confronted  him 
with  the  witnesses,  whose  names  are  given  at  the  foot 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  293 

of  the  indictment,  still  extant  among  our  records,  and  en- 
dorsed in  Mr.  Randolph's  own  hand-writing;  convicted 
him  on  that  charge,  on  which  charge,  and  on  which  alone, 
Philips  was  regularly  sentenced  and  executed.  Yet,  not  only 
Mr.  Randolph,  but  all  the  other  members  who  had  occa- 
sion to  advert  to  the  circumstance,  and  even  Mr.  Henry, 
on  whom  it  is  supposed  to  have  been  designed  to  bear, 
proceed  in  their  several  criminations  and  defences, 
upon  the  admission  that  Philips  had  fallen  a  victim  to 
the  bill  of  attainder.  Had  the  incident  been  of  a  com- 
mon character,  there  would  have  been  nothing  strange 
in  its  having  been  forgotten;  but  it  is  one  of  so  singu- 
lar and  interesting  a  nature,  that  this  total  oblivion  of  it 
by  the  principal  actors  themselves,  becomes  a  matter  of 
curious  history.* 

The  convention  had  been  attended  from  its  com- 
mencement, by  a  vast  concourse  of  citizens  of  all  ages 
and  conditions.  The  interest  so  universally  felt  in  the 
question  itself,  and  not  less  the  transcendent  talents 
which  were  engaged  in  its  discussion,  presented  such 
attractions  as  could  not  be  resisted.  Industry  deserted 
its  pursuits,  and  even  dissipation  gave  up  its  objects, 
for  the  superior  enjoyments  which  were  presented  by 
the  hall  of  the  convention.  Not  only  the  people  of  the 
town  and  neighbourhood,  but  gentlemen  from  every 
quarter  of  the  state,  were  seen  thronging  to  the  me- 
tropolis, and  speeding  their  eager  way  to  the  building 
in  which  the  convention  held  its  meetings.  Day  after 
day,  from  morning  till  night,  the  galleries  of  the  house 
were  continually  filled  with  an  anxious  crowd,  who  for- 
got the  inconvenience  of  their  situation,  in  the  excess 
of  their  enjoyment;  and  far  from  giving  any  interrup- 

*  See  Appendix,  Note  C. 


294  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

tion  to  the  course  of  the  debate,  increased  its  interest 
and  solemnity,  by  their  silence  and  attention.  No 
bustle,  no  motion,  no  sound  was  heard  among  them, 
save  only  a  slight  movement  when  some  new  speaker 
arose,  whom  they  were  all  eager  to  see  as  well  as  to 
hear,  or  when  some  master  stroke  of  eloquence  shot 
thrilling  along  their  nerves,  and  extorted  an  involuntary 
and  inarticulate  murmur.  Day  after  day,  was  this  ban- 
quet of  the  mind  and  of  the  heart  spread  before  them, 
with  a  delicacy  and  variety  which  could  never  cloy. 
There  every  taste  might  find  its  peculiar  gratifica- 
tions—the man  of  wit — the  man  of  feeling — the  critic- — 
the  philosopher — the  historian — the  metaphysician — 
the  lover  of  logic — the  admirer  of  rhetoric — every  man 
who  had  an  eye  for  the  beauty  of  action,  or  an  ear  for 
the  harmony  of  sound,  or  a  soul  for  the  charms  of 
poetic  fancy — in  short  eveiy  one  who  could  see,  or  hear, 
or  feel,  or  understand,  might  find  in  the  wanton  profu- 
sion and  prodigality  of  that  attic  feast,  some  delicacy 
adapted  to  his  peculiar  taste.  Every  mode  of  attack 
and  of  defence,  of  which  the  human  mind  is  capable, 
in  decorous  debate — every  species  of  weapon  and 
armour,  offensive  and  defensive,  that  could  be  used  with 
advantage,  from  the  Roman  javelin  to  the  Parthian 
arrow,  from  the  cloud  of  iEneas,  to  the  shield  of 
Achilles — all  that  could  be  accomplished  by  human 
strength,  and  almost  more  than  human  activity,  was 
seen  exhibited  on  that  celebrated  floor.  Nor  did  the 
debate  become  oppressive  by  its  unvarying  formality. 
The  stateliness  and  sternness  of  extended  argument, 
were  frequently  relieved  by  quick  and  animated  dia- 
logue. Sometimes  the  conversation  would  become 
familiar  and  friendly.  The  combatants  themselves, 
would  seem  pleased  with  this  relief;  forget  that  they 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  295 

were  enemies,  and  by  a  sort  of  informal  truce,  put  off 
their  armour,  and  sit  down  amicably  together  to  repose, 
as  it  were,  in  the  shade  of  the  same  tree.  By  this  agree- 
able intermixture  of  colloquiarsprightliness  and  bril- 
liancy, with  profound,  and  learned,  and  vigorous  argu- 
ment— of  social  courtesy  with  heroic  gallantry,  the  audi- 
ence, far  from  being  fatigued  with  the  discussion,  look- 
ed with  regret  to  the  hour  of  adjournment. 

In  this  great  competition  of  talents,  Mr.  Henry's 
powers  of  debate  still  shone  pre-eminent.  They  were 
now  exhibiting  themselves  in  a  new  aspect.  Hitherto 
his  efforts,  however  splendid,  had  been  comparatively 
short  and  occasional.  In  the  house  of  burgesses  in 
1765,  in  the  congress  of  1774,  and  the  state  convention 
of  1775,  he  had  exhibited  the  impetuous  charge  of  the 
gallant  Francis  the  first:  but  now,  in  combination  with 
fiery  force,  he  was  displaying  all  the  firm  and  dauntless 
constancy  of  Charles  the  fifth.  No  shock  of  his  adver- 
saries could  move  him  from  his  ground.  His  resources 
never  failed.  His  eloquence  was  poured  from  inexhausti- 
ble fountains,  and  assumed  every  variety  of  hue  and 
form  and  motion,  which  could  delight  or  persuade,  in- 
struct or  astonish.  Sometimes  it  was  the  limpid  rivulet 
sparkling  down  the  mountain's  side,  and  winding  its  sil- 
ver course  between  margins  of  moss — then  gradually 
swelling  to  a  bolder  stream,  it  roared  in  the  headlong 
cataract,  and  spread  its  rainbows  to  the  sun — now,  it 
flowed  on  in  tranquil  majesty,  like  a  river  of  the  west, 
reflecting  from  its  polished  surface,  forest,  and  cliff,  and 
sky — anon,  it  was  the  angry  ocean,  chafed  by  the  tem- 
pest, hanging  its  billows,  with  deafening  clamours, 
among  the  cracking  shrouds,  or  hurling  them  in  sublime 
defiance,  at  the  storm  that  frowned  above. 

Towards  the  close  of  the  session,  an  incident  occur- 


296  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

red  of  a  character  so  extraordinary  as  to  deserve  par- 
ticular notice.     The  question  of  adoption  or  rejection 
was  now  approaching.     The  decision  was  still  uncer- 
tain, and  eveiy  mind 'and  every  heart  was  filled  with 
anxiety.     Mr.  Henry  partook  most  deeply  of  this  feel- 
ing; and  while  engaged,  as  it  were,  in  his  last  effort, 
availed  himself  of  the  strong  sensation  which  he  knew 
to  pervade  the  house,  and  made  an  appeal  to  it  which, 
in  point  of  sublimity,  has  never  been  surpassed  in  any 
age   or  country  of  the  world.     After  describing,   in 
accents  which  spoke  to  the  soul,  and  to  which  every 
other  bosom  deeply  responded,  the  awfid  immensity  of 
the  question  to  the  present  and  future  generations,  and 
the  throbbing  apprehensions  with  which  he  looked  to 
the   issue,  he   passed  from  the  house  and   from  the 
earth,  and  looking,  as  he  said,  "  beyond  that  horizon 
which  binds  mortal  eyes/5  he  pointed — with  a  counte- 
nance and  action  that  made  the  blood  run  back  upon 
the  aching  heart — to  those  celestial  beings,  who  were 
hovering  over  the  scene,  and  waiting  with  anxiety,  for  a 
decision  which  involved  the  happiness  or  misery  of  more 
than  half  the  human  race.     To  those  beings — with  the 
same  thrilling  look  and  action — he  had  just  addressed 
an  invocation,  that  made   every  nerve   shudder  with 
supernatural  horror — when  lo!  a  storm,  at  that  instant 
arose,  which  shook  the  whole  building,  and  the  spirits 
whom  he  had  called,  seemed  to  have  come  at  his  bidding. 
Nor  did  his   eloquence,  or    the    storm,    immediately 
cease — but,  availing  himself  of  the  incident,  with  a  mas- 
ter's art,  he  seemed  to  mix  in  the  fight  of  his  aetherial 
auxiliaries,  and  "  rising  on  the  wings  of  the  tempest,  to 
seize  upon  the  artillery  of  Heaven,  and  direct  its  fiercest 
thunders  against  the  heads  of  his  adversaries."     The 
scene  became  insupportable;  and  the  house  rose,  with- 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  297 

out  the  formality  of  adjournment,  the  members  rushing 
from  their  seats  with  precipitation  and  confusion* 

But  all  his  efforts  were  in  vain.  Either  the  justice 
of  the  opposing  cause,  or  the  powers  of  his  adversaries, 
or  the  prejudged  opinions  and  instructions  of  the  mem- 
bers, rendered  his  reasoning  and  his  eloquence  equally 
unavailing.  Out  of  a  house,  composed  of  one  hundred 
and  sixty-eight  members,  the  question  of  ratification  was 
carried  by  a  majority  of  ten.  Mr.  Henry  himself,  seem- 
ed to  have  a  presage  of  this  result.  After  the  storm 
which  has  been  mentioned,  colonel  Innis,  who,  in  his 
character  of  attorney  general,  had  been  hitherto  attend- 
ing a  court  of  oyer  and  terminer,  came  into  the  house, 
and  the  debate  was  renewed.  Mr.  Henry,  in  answer- 
ing him,  closed  the  last  speech  which  he  delivered  on 
the  floor,  with  the  following  remarks: 

"  I  beg  pardon  of  this  house,  for  having  taken  up  more 
time  than  came  to  my  share;  and  I  thank  them  for  the 
patience  and  polite  attention  with  which  I  have  been 
heard.  If  I  shall  be  in  the  minority,  I  shall  have  those 
painful  sensations  which  arise  from  a  conviction  of 
being  overpowered  in  a  good  cause.  Yet,  I  will  be  a 
peaceable  citizen!  My  head,  my  hand,  and  my  heart, 
shall  be  free  to  retrieve  the  loss  of  liberty,  and  remove 
the  defects  of  that  system,  in  a  constitutional  way.  I 
wish  not  to  go  to  violence,  but  will  wait  with  hopes  that 


*  The  words  above  quoted  are  those  of  judge  Archibald  Stuart ;  a  gentle- 
man who  was  present,  a  member  of  the  convention,  and  one  of  those  who 
voted  against  the  side  of  the  question,  supported  by  Mr.  Henry.  The  inci- 
dent as  given  in  the  text,  is  wholly  founded  on  the  statements  of  those  who 
were  witnesses  of  the  scene;  and  by  comparing  it  with  the  corresponding 
passage  in  the  printed  debates,  the  reader  may  decide  how  far  these  are  to 
be  relied  on,  as  specimens  of  Mr.  Henry's  eloquence. 

P  p 


298  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

the  spirit  which  predominated  in  the  revolution,  is  not 
yet  gone;  nor  the  cause  of  those  who  are  attached  to 
the  revolution,  yet  lost — I  shall  therefore  patiently 
wait,  in  expectation  of  seeing  that  government  changed, 
so  as  to  be  compatible  with  the  safety,  liberty,  and  hap- 
piness of  the  people/' 

The  objections  however,  which  had  been  urged,  and 
the  arguments  by  which  they  had  been  supported,  al- 
though they  had  not  succeeded  in  preventing  the  ratifi- 
cation of  the  constitution,  had  produced  a  very  serious 
effect  on  the  house.  Before  their  final  dissolution, 
they  agreed  to  a  bill  of  rights,  and  a  series  of  amend- 
ments (twenty  in  number)  embracing  and  providing  for 
the  objections  of  Mr.  Henry  and  his  associates.  A  copy 
of  these  amendments  engrossed  on  parchment,  and  sign- 
ed by  the  president  of  the  convention,  was  ordered  to 
be  transmitted  to  congress,  together  with  the  instru- 
ment of  ratification.  Similar  copies  were  ordered  to 
be  transmitted  to  the  executives  and  legislatures  of  the 
several  states;  and  fifty  copies  of  the  ratification  and 
proposed  amendments,  were  ordered  to  be  struck 
for  the  use  of  each  county  in  this  commonwealth, 

Mr.  Henry  lost  no  ground  with  the  people,  at  the  time, 
for  the  part  which  he  had  taken  on  this  occasion:  and 
when  afterwards  the  constitution  began  to  develope  its 
tendencies  by  practical  operation,  so  many  of  his  pre- 
dictions were  believed  by  a  majority  of  the  people  of 
Virginia  to  be  fulfilled,  and  so  many  more  in  a  rapid 
progress  of  fulfilment,  that  his  character  for  political 
penetration  rose  higher  than  ever.  That  he  had  lost 
no  ground  at  the  time,  two  signal  proofs  were  given  in 
the  session  of  assembly  immediately  following  that  of 
the  convention.     The  latter  body  rose  on  the  27th  of 


LIFE   OP   HENRY.  299 

June,  and  the  assembly  met  on  the  20th  of  October 
following.  This  interval  had  been  too  short  to  permit 
the  subsidence  of  that  high  excitement,  which  the  can- 
vass of  the  constitution  had  provoked;  and  the  assembly 
was  consequently  discriminated  by  feelings  of  party  as 
strong  and  determined,  as  those  which  had  character- 
ized the  convention  itself. 

The  constitution  having  been  adopted  by  a  sufficient 
number  of  states  to  carry  it  into  effect,  it  became  neces- 
sary at  this  session,  to  provide  for  its  organization,  and, 
among  other  measures,  to  choose  two  senators  to  repre- 
sent this  state,  in  the  congress  of  the  United  States. 
For  this  office,  Mr.  Madison  was  presented  by  those  who 
were  at  that  time  distinguished  by  the  appellation  of 
federalists;  by  which  nothing  more  was  then  meant, 
than  that  they  were  advocates  for  the  adoption  of  the 
new  federal  constitution.  The  anti-federalists,  on  the 
contrary,  who  were  alarmed  by  the  vast  powers  which 
they  considered  as  granted  by  the  constitution,  regarded 
it  as  a  salutary  check  on  the  constructive  extension  of 
those  powers,  and  as  the  best  means  of  securing  those 
amendments  which  they  deemed  essential  to  the  liber- 
ties of  the  people,  that  the  first  congress  should  be 
composed  of  men  of  their  own  sentiments.  In  oppo- 
sition to  Mr.  Madison  therefore,  Mr.  Henry  took  the 
unusual  liberty  of  nominating  two  candidates,  Mr. 
Richard  H.  Lee  and  Mr.  Grayson;  and,  notwithstand- 
ing the  great  accession  of  character  which  Mr.  Madison 
had  acquired  by  the  ability  with  which  he  had  espoused 
the  ratification  of  the  constitution,  those  gentlemen 
were  elected  by  a  considerable  majority. 

At  the  same  session  of  the  assembly,  Mr.  Henry, 
whose  mind  seems  to  have  been  filled  with  the  most 
oppressive  solicitude  by  the  unconditional  adoption  of 


300  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

the  constitution,  and  who  brooded  with  correspondent 
anxiety,  over  the  most  effective  means  of  procuring 
amendments,  moved  in  the  committee  of  the  whole 
house,  the  following  preamble  and  resolutions: 

"  Whereas  the  convention  of  delegates  of  the  people 
of  this  commonwealth,  did  ratify  a  constitution  or  form 
of  government  for  the  United  States,  referred  to  them 
for  their  consideration,  and  did  also  declare  that  sundry 
amendments  to  exceptionable  parts  of  the  same  ought 
to  be  adopted;  and  whereas  the  subject  matter  of  the 
amendments  agreed  to  by  the  said  convention,  involves 
all  the  great,  essential,  and  unalienable  rights,  liberties, 
and  privileges  of  freemen;  many  of  which,  if  not  can- 
celled, are  rendered  insecure  under  the  said  constitution, 
until  the  same  shall  be  altered  and  amended: 

"  Resolved,  That  it  is  the  opinion  of  this  committee, 
that  for  quieting  the  minds  of  the  good  citizens  of  this 
commonwealth — and  securing  their  dearest  rights  and 
liberties — and  preventing  those  disorders  which  must 
arise,  under  a  government  not  founded  in  the  confidence 
of  the  people — application  be  made  to  the  congress  of 
the  United  States,  as  soon  as  they  shall  assemble  under 
the  said  constitution,  to  call  a  convention,  for  proposing 
amendments  to  the  same,  according  .to  the  mode  therein 
directed. 

"  Resolved,  That  it  is  the  opinion  of  this  committee, 
that  a  committee  ought  to  be  appointed  to  draw  up  and 
report  to  this  house,  a  proper  instrument  of  writing, 
expressing  the  sense  of  the  general  assembly,  and  point- 
ing out  the  reasons  which  induce  them  to  urge  their 
application  thus  early,  for  the  calling  the  aforesaid  con- 
vention of  the  states. 

"  Resolved,  That  it  is  the  opinion  of  this  committee, 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  301 

that  the  said  committee  ought  to  be  instructed  to  pre- 
pare the  draft  of  a  letter,  in  answer  to  one  received 
from  his  excellency  George  Clinton,  esquire,  president 
of  the  convention  of  New  York — and  a  circular  letter, 
on  the  aforesaid  subject,  to  the  other  states  in  the 
union,  expressive  of  the  wish  of  the  general  assembly 
of  this  commonwealth,  that  they  may  join  in  an  appli- 
cation to  the  new  congress,  to  appoint  a  convention  of 
the  states,  so  soon  as  the  congress  shall  assemble  under 
the  new  constitution." 

These  were  carried  in  committee,  and  immediately 
reported  to  the  house;  when  a  motion  was  made  to 
amend  them,  by  striking  out  from  the  word  "  whereas," 
and  substituting,  in  lieu  of  the  original,  the  following 
preamble  and  resolutions: 

"  Whereas  the  delegates  appointed  to  represent  the 
good  people  of  this  commonwealth,  in  the  late  conven- 
tion held  in  the  month  of  June  last,  did,  by  their  act  of 
the  25th  of  the  same  month,  assent  to  and  ratify  the 
constitution  recommended  on  the  1 7th  day  of  Septem- 
ber, 1787,  by  the  federal  convention  for  the  government 
of  the  United  States,  declaring  themselves,  with  a 
solemn  appeal  to  the  Searcher  of  hearts  for  the  purity  of 
their  intentions,  under  the  conviction,  '  that  whatsoever 
imperfections  might  exist  in  the  constitution,  ought 
rather  to  be  examined  in  the  mode  prescribed  therein, 
than  to  bring  the  union  into  danger  by  a  delay,  with  a 
hope  of  obtaining  amendments  previous  to  the  ratifica- 
tion.' And  whereas,  in  pursuance  of  the  said  declara- 
tion, the  same  convention  did,  by  their  subsequent  act 
of  the  27th  of  June  aforesaid,  agree  to  such  amend- 
ments to  the  said  constitution  of  the  government  for 


302  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

the  United  States,  as  were  by  them  deemed  necessary 
to  be  recommended  to  the  consideration  of  the  con- 
gress, which  shall  first  assemble  under  the  said  consti- 
tution, to  be  acted  upon  according  to  the  mode  pre- 
scribed in  the  fifth  article  thereof;  at  the  same  time 
enjoining  it  upon  their  representatives  in  congress,  to 
exert  all  their  influence,  and  use  all  reasonable  and  legal 
methods,  to  obtain  a  ratification  of  the  foregoing  altera- 
tions and  provisions,  in  the  manner  provided  by  the  fifth 
article  of  the  said  constitution,  and  in  all  congressional 
laws  to  be  passed  in  the  mean  time,  to  conform  to  the 
spirit  of  those  amendments  as  far  as  the  said  constitu- 
tion would  admit: 

"  Resolved,  therefore,  That  it  is  the  opinion  of  this 
committee,  that  an  application  ought  to  be  made,  in  the 
name  and  on  the  behalf  of  the  legislature  of  this  com- 
monwealth, to  the  congress  of  the  United  States,  so 
soon  as  they  shall  assemble  under  the  said  constitution, 
to  pass  an  act,  recommending  to  the  legislatures  of  the 
several  states,  the  ratification  of  a  bill  of  rights,  and  of 
certain  articles  of  amendment,  proposed  by  the  conven- 
tion of  this  state,  for  the  adoption  of  the  United  States; 
and  that,  until  the  said  act  shall  be  ratified  in  pursuance 
of  the  fifth  article  of  the  said  constitution  of  the  govern- 
ment for  the  United  States,  congress  do  conform  their 
ordinances  to  the  true  spirit  of  the  said  bill  of  rights 
and  articles  of  amendment. 

"  Resolved,  That  it  is  the  opinion  of  this  committee, 
that  the  executive  ought  to  be  instructed  to  transmit  a 
copy  of  the  foregoing  resolution  to  the  congress  of  the 
United  States,  so  soon  as  they  shall  assemble,  and  to 
the  legislatures  and  executive  authorities  of  each  state 
in  the  union." 


LIFE  OP  HENRY.  303 

On  this  proposal  of  amendment,  a  very  animated 
debate  ensued,  which  resulted  in  its  rejection,  and  the 
adoption  of  the  original  report,  by  a  majority  of  more 
than  two  for  one. 

These  two  measures — the  election  of  the  senators 
named  by  Mr.  Henry,  in  opposition  to  so  formidable  a 
competitor  as  Mr.  Madison — and  the  carrying  so  strong 
a  measure,  as  the  call  of  a  new  continental  convention, 
for  the  purpose  of  revising  and  altering  the  constitution — 
certainly  furnish  the  most  decisive  proof,  that  his  influ- 
ence remained  unimpaired  by  the  part  which  he  had 
taken  in  the  convention  of  the  state. 

It  was  in  the  course  of  the  debate  which  has  been 
just  mentioned,  that  Mr.  Henry  was  driven  from  his 
usual  decorum  into  a  retaliation,  that  became  a  theme 
of  great  public  merriment  at  the  time,  and  has  conti- 
nued ever  since,  one  of  the  most  popular  anecdotes  that 
relate  to  him.  He  had  insisted  it  seems,  with  great 
force,  that  the  speedy  adoption  of  the  amendments  was 
the  only  measure  that  could  secure  the  great  and  un- 
alienable rights  of  the  freemen  of  this  country — that  the 
people  were  known  to  be  exceedingly  anxious  for  this 
measure — that  it  was  the  only  step  which  could  recon- 
cile them  to  the  new  constitution — and  assure  that  public 
contentment,  security  and  confidence,  which  were  the 
sole  objects  of  government,  and  without  which  no 
government  could  stand — that  whatever  might  be  the 
individual  sentiments  of  gentlemen,  yet  the  wishes  of 
the  people,  the  fountain  of  all  authority,  being  known, 
they  were  bound  to  conform  to  those  wishes — that,  for 
his  own  part,  he  considered  his  opinion  as  nothing, 
when  opposed  to  those  of  his  constituents;  and  that  he 
was  ready  and  willing,  at  all  times  and  on  all  occasions, 
"  to  bote  with  the  utmost  deference,  to  the  majesty  of  the 


304  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

people" — A  young  gentleman,  on  the  federal  side  of 
the  house,  who  had  been  a  member  of  the  late  conven- 
tion, and  had  in  that  body,  received,  on  one  occasion,  a 
slight  touch  of  Mr.  Henry's  lash,  resolved  now,  in  an 
ill-fated  moment,  to  make  a  set  charge  upon  the  vete- 
ran, and  brave  him  to  the  combat.  He  possessed  fancy, 
a  graceful  address,  and  an  easy,  sprightly  elocution;  and 
had  been  sent  by  his  father  (an  opulent  man,  and  an 
officer  of  high  rank  and  trust  under  the  regal  govern- 
ment) to  finish  his  education  in  the  colleges  of  England, 
and  acquire  the  polish  of  the  court  of  St.  James;  where 
lie  had  passed  the  ivhole  period  of  the  American  revolu- 
tion. Returning  with  advantages  which  were  rare  in 
this  country;  and  with  the  confidence  natural  to  his 
years;  presuming  a  little  too  far  upon  those  advantages, 
he  seized  upon  the  words,  •"  bow  to  the  majesty  of  the 
people,"  which  Mr.  Henry  had  used,  and  rung  the 
changes  upon  them  with  considerable  felicity.  He  de- 
nied the  solicitude  of  the  people  for  the  amendments, 
so  strenuously  urged  on  the  other  side;  he  insisted  that 
the  people  thought  their  "  great  and  unalienable  rights" 
sufficiently  secured  by  the  constitution  which  they  had 
adopted;  that  the  preamble  of  the  constitution  itself, 
which  was  now  to  be  considered  as  the  language  of  the 
people,  declared  its  objects  to  be  .among  others,  the 
security  of  those  very  rights;  the  people  then,  declare  the 
constitution  the  guaranty  of  their  rights,  while  the  gen- 
tleman, in  opposition  to  this  public  declaration  of  their 
sentiments,  insists  upon  his  amendments,  as  furnishing 
that  guaranty;  yet  the  gentleman  tells  us,  that  "he  bows 
to  the  majesty  of  the  people:"  these  words  he  accom- 
panied with  a  most  graceful  bow.  "  The  gentleman, 
he  proceeded,  "  had  set  himself  in  opposition  to  the  will 
of  the  people,  throughout  the  whole  course  of  this  trans- 


?■*- 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  305 

action:  the  people  approved  of  the  constitution:  the 
suffrage  of  their  constituents  in  the  last  convention,  had 
proven  it — the  people  wished,  most  anxiously  wished, 
the  adoption  of  the  constitution,  as  the  only  means  of 
saving  the  credit  and  the  honour  of  the  country,  and 
producing  the  stability  of  the  union:  the  gentleman,  on 
the  contrary,  had  placed  himself  at  the  head  of  those 
who  opposed  its  adoption — yet,  the  gentleman  is  ever 
ready  and  willing,  at  all  times  and  on  all  occasions, 
"  to  bow  to  the  majesty  of  the  people:"  (with  another 
profound  and  graceful  bow.)  Thus  he  proceeded, 
through  a  number  of  animated  sentences,  winding  up 
each  one  with  the  same  words,  sarcastically  repeated, 
and  the  accompaniment  of  the  same  graceful  obeisance. 
Among  other  things,  he  said,  "  it  was  of  little  import- 
ance, whether  a  country  was  ruled  by  a  despot,  with  a 
tiara  on  his  head,  or  by  a  demagogue  in  a  red  cloak,  a 
caul-bare  wig,  &c.^  (describing  Mr.  Henry's  dress  so 
minutely,  as  to  draw  every  eye  upon  him)  "  although  he 
slioidd  profess  on  all  occasions,  to  bow  to  tlie  majesty 
of  the  people."  A  gentleman  who  was  present,  and 
who,  struck  with  the  singularity  of  the  attack,  had  the 
curiosity  to  number  the  vibrations  on  those  words,  and 
the  accompanying  action,  states  that  he  counted  thirteen 
of  the  most  graceful  bows  he  had  ever  beheld.  The 
friends  of  Mr.  Henry,  considered  such  an  attack  on  a 
man  of  his  years  and  high  character,  as  very  little  short 
of  sacrilege;  on  the  other  side  of  the  house,  there  was, 
indeed,  a  smothered  sort  of  dubious  laugh,  in  which 
there  seemed  to  be  at  least  as  much  apprehension  as 
enjoyment.  Mr.  Henry  had  heard  the  whole  of  it, 
without  any  apparent  mark  of  attention.  The  young 
gentleman  having  finished  his  philippic,  very  much  at 
least  to  his  own  satisfaction,  took  his  seat,  with  the 

Qq 


306  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

gayest  expression  of  triumph  in  his  countenance— 
"  Heu!  JVescia  mens  hominum  fati,  sortisquc  futimer 
Mr.  Henry  raised  himself  up,  heavily  and  with  affected 
awkwardness — "  Mr.  Speaker, "  said  he,  "  I  am  a  plain 
man,  and  have  heen  educated  altogether  in  Virginia. 
My  whole  life  has  been  spent  among  planters  and  other 
plain  men  of  similar  education,  who  have  never  had 
the  advantage  of  that  polish,  which  a  court  alone  can 
give,  and  which  the  gentleman  over  the  way,  has  so 
happily  acquired;  indeed  sir,  the  gentleman's  employ- 
ments, and  mine  (in  common  with  the  great  mass  of  his 
countrymen)  have  been  as  widely  different  as  our  for- 
tunes; for  while  that  gentleman  was  availing  himself  of 
the  opportunity  which  a  splendid  fortune  afforded  him, 
of  acquiring  a  foreign  education,  mixing  among  the 
great,  attending  levees  and  courts,  basking  in  the 
beams  of  royal  favour  at  St.  James\  and  exchanging 
courtesies  with  crowned  heads,  I  was  engaged  in  the 
arduous  toils  of  the  revolution;  and  was  probably  as  far 
from  thinking  of  acquiring  those  polite  accomplishments 
which  the  gentleman  has  so  successfully  cultivated,  as 
that  gentleman  then  was,  from  sharing  in  the  toils  and 
dangers  in  which  his  unpolished  countrymen  were  en- 
gaged. I  will  not  therefore,  presume  to  vie  with  the 
gentleman,  in  those  courtly  accomplishments,  of  which 
he  has  just  given  the  house  so  agreeable  a  specimen, 
yet  such  a  bow  as  I  can  make,  shall  be  ever  at  the  ser- 
vice of  the  people" — herewith,  although  there  was  no 
man  who  could  make  a  more  graceful  bow  than  Mr. 
Henry,  he  made  one  so  ludicrously  awkward  and  clown- 
ish, as  took  the  house  by  surprise,  and  put  them  into  a 
roar  of  laughter— "  the  gentleman,  I  hope,  will  com- 
miserate the  disadvantages  of  education  under  which  I 
have  laboured,  and  will  be  pleased  to  remember,  that  I 


4 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  307 

have  never  been  a  favourite  with  that  monarch,  whose 
gracious  smile  he  has  had  the  happiness  to  enjoy."  He 
pursued  this  contrast  of  situations  and  engagements,  for 
fifteen  or  twenty  minutes,  without  a  smile,  and  without, 
the  smallest  token  of  resentment,  either  in  countenance,, 
expression  or  manner.  "You  would  almost  have 
sworn/'  says  a  correspondent,  "  that  he  thought  himself 
making  his  apology  for  his  own  awkwardness,  before  a 
full  drawing-room  at  St.  James'.  I  believe  there  was 
not  a  person  that  heard  him,  the  sufferer  himself  ex- 
cepted, who  did  not  feel  every  risible  nerve  affected. 
His  adversary  mean  time,  hung  down  his  head,  and 
sinking  lower  and  lower,  until  he  was  almost  conceal- 
ed behind  the  interposing  forms,  submitted  to  the  dis- 
cipline as  quietly  as  a  Russian  malefactor,  who  had 
been  beaten  with  the  knout,  till  all  sense  of  feeling  was 

lost." 

The  documents  reported  and  adopted  by  the  house 
of  delegates,  in  consequence  of  the  foregoing  resolu- 
tions, are  the  following: — which  are  given  because  they 
are  said  to  be  from  the  pen  of  Mr.  Henry. 

"  Resolved,  That  it  is  the  opinion  of  this  committee, 
that  an  application  ought  to  be  made,  in  the  name  and 
on  behalf  of  the  legislature  of  this  commonwealth,  to 
the  congress  of  the  United  States,  in  the  following- 
words,  to  wit: 

"  The  good  people  of  this  commonwealth, 

"  In  convention  assembled,  having  ratified  the  con- 
stitution submitted  to  their  consideration,  this  legisla- 
ture has,  in  conformity  to  that  act,  and  the  resolutions 
of  the  United  States  in  congress  assembled,  to  them 
transmitted,  thought  proper  to  make  the  arrangements 


308  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

that  were  necessary  for  carrying  it  into  effect.  Hav- 
ing thus  shown  themselves  obedient  to  the  voice  of 
their  constituents,  all  America  will  find,  that  so  far  as  it 
depends  on  them,  that  plan  of  government  will  be  car- 
ried into  immediate  operation.  But  the  sense  of  the 
people  of  Virginia,  would  be  but  in  part  complied  with, 
and  but  little  regarded,  if  we  went  no  further.  In  the 
very  moment  of  adoption,  and  coeval  with  the  ratifica- 
tion of  the  new  plan  of  government,  the  general  voice 
of  the  convention  of  this  state,  pointed  to  objects  no 
less  interesting  to  the  people  we  represent,  and  equally 
entitled  to  your  attention.  At  the  same  time,  that  from 
motives  of  affection  for  our  sister  states,  the  convention 
yielded  their  assent  to  the  ratification,  they  gave  the 
most  unequivocal  proofs,  that  they  dreaded  its  opera- 
tion under  the  present  form.. 

"  In  acceding  to  a  government  under  this  impression, 
painful  must  have  been  the  prospect,  had  they,  not  de- 
rived consolation  from  a  full  expectation  of  its  imper- 
fections being  speedily  amended.  In  this  resource, 
therefore,  they  placed  their  confidence — a  confidence, 
that  will  continue  to  support  them,  whilst  they  have 
reason  to  believe,  they  have  not  calculated  upon  it  in 
vain. 

"  In  making  known,  to  you  the  objections  of  the  peo- 
ple of  this  commonwealth  to  the  new  plan  of  govern- 
ment, we  deem  it  unnecessary  to  enter  into  a  particular 
detail  of  its  defects,  which  they  consider  as  involving 
all  the  great  and  unalienable  rights  of  freemen:  For 
their  sense  on  this  subject,  we  refer  you  to  the  proceed- 
ings of  their  late  convention,  and  the  sense  of  this 
general  assembly,  as  expressed  in  their  resolutions  of 
the day  of . 

"  We  think  proper,  however,  to  declare  that  in  our 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  309 

opinion,  as  those  objections  were  not  founded  on  specu- 
lative theory,  but  deduced  from  principles  which  have 
been  established  by  the  melancholy  example  of  other 
nations,  in  different  ages — so  they  never  will  be  remov- 
ed, until  the  cause  itself  shall  cease  to  exist.  The 
sooner,  therefore,  the  public  apprehensions  are  quieted, 
and  the  government  is  possessed  of  the  confidence  of 
the  people,  the  more  salutary  will  be  its  operations,  and 
the  longer  its  duration. 

"  The  cause  of  amendments,  we  consider  as  a  com- 
mon cause;  and  since  concessions  have  been  made 
from  political  motives,  which  ive  conceive  may  endanger 
the  republic,  we  trust  that  a  commendable  zeal  will  be 
shown  for  obtaining  those  provisions,  which  experience 
has  taught  us  are  necessary  to  secure  from  danger,  the 
unalienable  rights  of  human  nature. 

"  The  anxiety  with  which  our  countrymen  press  for 
the  accomplishment  of  this  important  end,  will  ill  ad- 
mit of  delay.  The  slow  forms  of  congressional  discus- 
sion and  recommendation,  if  indeed  they  should  ever 
agree  to  any  change,  would  we  fear  be  less  certain  of 
success.  Happily  for  their  wishes,  the  constitution 
hath  presented  an  alternative,  by  admitting  the  sub- 
mission to  a  convention  of  the  states.  To  this  there- 
fore, we  resort,  as  the  source  from  whence  they  are  to 
derive  relief  from  their  present  apprehensions.  We 
do,  therefore,  in  behalf  of  our  constituents,  in  the  most 
earnest  and  solemn  manner,  make  this  application  to 
congress,  that  a  convention  be  immediately  called,  of 
deputies  from  the  several  states,  with  full  power  to  take 
into  their  consideration  the  defects  of  this  constitution, 
that  have  been  suggested  by  the  state  conventions,  and 
report  such  amendments  thereto,  as  they  shall  find  best 
suited  to  promote  our  common  interests,  and  secure  to 


310  •  SKETCHES  OE  THE 

ourselves,  and  our  latest  posterity,  the  great  and  un- 
alienable rights  of  mankind." 

Draft  of  a  letter  to  governor  Clinton  on  the  same 
subject: 

"  Sir, 

"  The  letter  from  the  convention  of  the  state  ol* 
New-York,  hath  been  laid  before  us,  since  our  present 
session.  The  subject  which  it  contemplated,  was  taken 
up,  and  we  have  the  pleasure  to  inform  you,  of  the 
entire  concurrence  in  sentiment,  between  that  honour- 
able body,  and  the  representatives  in  senate  and  as- 
sembly, of  the  freemen  of  this  commonwealth.  The 
propriety  of  immediately  calling  a  convention  of  the 
states,  to  take  into  consideration  the  defects  of  the  con- 
stitution was  admitted;  and  in  consequence  thereof,  an 
application  agreed  to,  to  be  presented  to  the  congress 
so  soon  as  it  shall  be  convened,  for  the  accomplishment 
of  that  important  end.  We  herewith  transmit  to  your 
excellency,  a  copy  of  this  application,  which  we  request 
may  be  laid  before  your  assembly  at  their  next  meeting. 
We  take  occasion  to  express  our  most  earnest  wishes, 
that  it  may  obtain  the  approbation  of  New-York,  and 
of  all  other  sister  states." 

Draft  of  a  letter  to  the  several  states  on  the  same 
subject: 

"  The  freemen  of  this  commonwealth,  in  convention 
assembled,  having  at  the  same  time  that  they  ratified 
the  federal  constitution,  expressed  a  desire  that  many 
parts  which  they  considered  as  exceptionable  parts, 
should  be  amended — the  general  assembly,  as  well  from 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  .311 

a  sense  of  duty  as  a  conviction  of  its  defects,  have 
thought  proper  to  take  the  earliest  measures  in  their 
power,  for  the  accomplishment  of  this  important  object. 
They  have  accordingly,  agreed  upon  an  application  to  be 
presented  to  the  congress,  so  soon  as  it  shall  be  assembled, 
requesting  that  honourable  body  to  call  a  convention  of 
deputies  from  the  several  states,  to  take  the  same  into 
their  consideration,  and  report  such  amendments,  as  they 
shall  find  best  calculated  to  answer  the  purpose.  As  we 
conceive  that  all  the  good  people  of  the  United  States 
are  equally  interested  in  obtaining  those  amendments 
that  have  been  proposed,  we  trust  that  there  will  be 
an  harmony  in  their  sentiments  and  measures,  upon 
this  very  interesting  subject.  We  herewith  transmit 
to  you  a  copy  of  this  application,  and  take  the  liberty 
to  subjoin  our  earnest  wishes  that  it  may  have  your  con- 
currence." 

In  the  two  remaining  years  during  which  Mr.  Henry 
continued  a  member  of  the  assembly,  I  find  nothing 
worthy  of  particular  remark.  In  the  spring  of  1791, 
he  declined  a  re-election,  with  the  purpose  of  bidding 
a  final  adieu  to  public  life:  and  although  the  tender  of 
the  most  honourable  appointments,  the  solicitations  of 
his  numerous  friends  and  admirers,  and  ultimately,  his 
own  wishes  conspired  to  draw  him  from  his  retreat,  he 
never  again  made  his  appearance  in  a  public  character. 


•31~  SKETCHES    OP    THE 


SECTION  IX. 

Mr.  Henry  still  continued,  however,  rather  through 
necessity  than  choice,  the  practise  of  the  law:  and  in 
the  fall  of  this  year,  1 791,  a  cause  came  on,  to  be  argued 
before  the  circuit  court  of  the  United  States,  in  which 
he  made  what  has  been  considered  his  most  distin- 
guished display  of  professional  talents.  This  was  the 
celebrated  case  of  the  British  debts;  a  case  in  which, 
from  its  great  and  extensive  interest,  the  whole  power 
of  the  bar  of  Virginia  was  embarked,  and  which  was 
discussed  with  so  much  learning,  argument,  and  elo- 
quence, as  to  have  placed  that  bar,  in  the  estimation  of 
the  federal  judges,  (if  the  reports  of  the  day  may  be 
accredited,)  above  all  others  in  the  United  States. 

The  cause  was  argued  first  in  1791,  before  judges 
Johnson  and  Blair,  of  the  supreme  court,  and  Griffin, 
judge  of  the  district;  and  afterwards  in  1793,  before 
judges  Jay  and  Iredell,  and  the  same  district  judge.  Mr. 
Henry  was  one  of  the  counsel  for  the  defendant,  and 
argued  the  cause  on  both  occasions.  The  deep  interest 
of  the  question  in  a  national  point  of  view,  and  the 
manner  in  which  it  involved  more  particularly,  the  ho- 
nour of  the  state  of  Virginia,  and  the  fortunes  of  her 
citizens,  had  excited  Mr.  Henry  to  a  degree  of  prepa- 
ration which  he  had  never  before  made;  and  he  came 
forth  on  this  occasion,  a  perfect  master  of  eveiy  prin- 
ciple of  law,  national  and  municipal,  which  touched  the 
subject  of  investigation  in  the  most  distant  point 

Of  the  first  argument,  a  manuscript  report  is  still 
extant,  taken  in  short-hand  by  Mr.  Robertson,  the  same 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  313 

gentleman  who  reported  the  debates  of  the  convention 
of  Virginia,  in  1 788.  The  second  argument  was  not 
reported;  because,  as  Mr.  Robertson  states,  he  was 
informed  by  the  counsel,  that  it  would  be  nothing  more 
than  a  repetition  of  the  first;  and  he  adds,  that  he  was 
afterwards  told  it  was  much  inferior.  What  must  we 
conclude,  then,  as  to  the  powers  displayed  by  Mr.  Henry 
in  the  first  argument,  when,  in  the  course  of  the  second 
and  inferior  one,  he  extorted  from  judge  Iredell,  as  he 
sat  on  the  bench,  the  exclamation — "  Gracious  God! — 
he  is  an  orator,  indeed!" 

The  report  of  the  first  argument,  as  deciphered  by 
Mr.  Robertson,  from  his  stenographic  notes,  has  been 
obligingly  submitted  to  the  author  of  these  sketches^ 
and  he  has  extracted  from  it  an  imperfect  analysis  of 
Mr.  Henry's  speech.  The  report  may  unquestionably 
be  relied  on,  so  far  as  it  professes  to  state  the  princi- 
ples of  law,  and  the  substance  of  the  arguments,  urged 
by  the  very  eminent  counsel  engaged  in  the  cause;  and 
in  this  point  of  view,  it  is  to  be  lamented  that  so  valuable 
a  work  should  still  exist  only  in  the  form  of  a  manu- 
script. But,  as  a  sample  of  Mr.  Henry's  peculiar  and 
inimitable  eloquence,  it  is  subject  to  all  the  objections 
which  have  been  already  urged  to  the  printed  debates 
of  the  Virginia  convention.  This  manuscript  report 
bears  upon  its  face  the  most  conclusive  proof  of  its 
inaccuracy  in  those  passages,  in  which  it  attempts  to 
exhibit  either  the  captivating  flights  of  Mr.  Henry's 
fancy,  or  those  unexpected  and  overwhelming  assaults 
which  he  made  upon  the  hearts  of  his  judges;  for  in 
all  such  passages,  (it  is  believed,  without  an  exception,) 
the  pen  has  been  drawn  through  the  sentence,  as  origi- 
nally written,  in  such  a  manner,  however,  as  to  leave 

the. words  still  legible;  while  the  same  thought,  or  some- 

r  r 


314  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

thing  like  it,  has  been  interlined  in  other  words;  and 
even  the  interlineations  themselves,  are  oftener  than 
otherwise,  erased,  altered,  and  farther  interlined,  for 
the  purpose  of  seeking  to  amend  the  expression:  so 
that,  in  casting  one's  eyes  over  the  manuscript  report 
of  Mr.  Henry's  speech,  in  order  to  single  out  the  most 
brilliant  passages,  those  which  are  the  most  blotted  and 
blurred  by  erasures  and  interlineations,  may  be  selected 
at  once,  without  the  hazard  of  mistake.  Hence  it  is 
obvious,  that  the  reporter  had  not,  in  his  stenographic 
notes,  the  very  expression  of  the  speaker;  but  some 
hint  merely,  of  the  thought,  which  he  was  afterwards 
unable  to  fill  up  to  his  own  satisfaction.  If  farther 
evidence  on  this  subject  were  required,  it  is  found  in 
this  circumstance;  that  on  reading  Mr.  Robertson's 
imitations  of  the  splendid  parts  of  Mr.  Henry's  speech, 
to  several  of  those  who  heard  it  delivered,  there  has 
not  been  one  who  has  not  turned  off  from  the  recital, 
with  the  strongest  expressions  of  disappointment,  and  in 
several  instances  corrected  by  memory  the  language  of 
the  reporter. 

This  explanation  is  equally  due  to  the  memory  of  Mr. 
Henry,  to  the  reader,  and  the  author;  for  the  author  is 
fully  aware  that  if  the  truth  of  the  general  character 
which  he  has  attempted  to  give  of  Mr.  Henry's  elo- 
quence, shall  be  tested  by  those  imperfect  specimens  to 
which,  for  want  of  more  accurate  ones,  he  has  been  com- 
pelled to  resort,  discredit  will  be  thrown  upon  the  whole 
work,  and  it  will  be  regarded,  rather  as  romance  than 
history.  But  the  ingenuous  and  candid  reader  will  look 
beyond  those  poor  and  wretched  imitations,  and  my  own 
equally  poor  and  wretched  descriptions,  to  that  proof  of 
Mr.  Henry's  eloquence  which  is  furnished  by  its  practi- 
cal effects.     Can  there  be  any  doubt  of  the  supreme 


LIFE    OF  HENRY.  315 

eloquence  of  that  man  who  awakened  and  hushed,  at 
his  pleasure,  "  the  stormy  wave  of  the  multitude?"  who, 
by  his  powers  of  speech,  roused  the  whole  American 
people,  from  north  to  south?  put  the  revolution  into 
motion  and  bore  it  upon  his  shoulders,  as  Atlas  is 
said  to  do  the  heavens?  to  whose  charms  of  persuasion, 
not  the  rabble  merely,  but  all  ranks  of  society  have 
borne  the  most  unanimous  evidence?  who  moved,  not 
merely  the  populace,  the  rocks  and  stones  of  the  field, 
but    "  by  the   summit  took  the  mountain  oak,    and 
and  made  him  stoop  to  the  plain?" — Instead  then,  of 
comparing  our  descriptions  of  Mr.  Henry's  eloquence, 
with  the  specimens  which  his  reporters  have  made  of 
it,  let  the  reader  compare  that  description  with  the 
effects  which  it  actually  wrought,  and  the  universal  tes- 
timony which  is  borne  to  it,  by  the  rapturous  admiration 
of  every  one  who  ever  had  the  happiness  to  hear  him; 
and  the  author,  so  far  from  being  afraid  of  the  charge 
of  exaggeration,  will  be  apprehensive  only,  of  that  of 
presumption,  in  attempting  a  description  of  powers  so 
perfectly  undescribable. 

But  to  return  to  his  argument  in  the  case  of  the 
British  debts.  In  order  to  render  intelligible  the  analysis 
which  we  propose  to  give  to  the  reader,  it  will  be  neces- 
sary to  prefix  to  it,  a  statement  of  the  case,  of  the  plead- 
ings, and  the  points  made  in  argument,  by  the  opening 
counsel. 

William  Jones,  a  British  subject,  as  surviving  partner 
of  the  mercantile  house  of  Farrell  and  Jones,  brought  an 
action  of  debt,  in  the  federal  court  at  Richmond,  against 
doctor  Thomas  Walker,  of  the  county  of  Albemarle,  in 
Virginia,  on  a  bond  which  bore  date  before  the  revolu- 
tionary war;  to  wit,  on  the  1 1th  of  May,  1 772.  To  this 
action  the  defendant  pleaded  five  several  pleas: 


316  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

1.  The  first  was,  the  plea  of  payment  generally,  on 
which  the  plaintiff  took  issue;  but  it  was  not  tried,  the 
cause  having  gone  oif  on  the  demurrers  growing  out  of 
the  subsequent  pleadings. 

2.  In  his  second  plea,  the  defendant  relies  on  the  act 
of  sequestration  passed  by  the  legislature  of  Virginia 
during  the  revolutionary  war,  to  wit,  on  the  20th  of 
October,  1 777 ;  by  which  it  was  enacted,  that  "  it  should 
be  lawful  for  any  citizen  of  this  commonwealth,  owing 
money  to  a  subject  of  Great  Britain,  to  pay  the  same,  or 
any  part  thereof,  from  time  to  time,  as  he  should  think 
fit,  into  the  loan  office  of  the  state;  taking  thereout  a  cer- 
tificate for  the  same  in  the  name  of  the  creditor,  with 
an  indorsement  under  the  hand  of  the  commissioner  of 
the  loan  office,  expressing  the  name  of  the  payee,  deli- 
vering such  certificate  to  the  governor  and  council, 
ivhose  receipt  should  discharge  him  from  so  much  of  the 
debt:" — and  the  defendant  exhibits  the  governor's  re- 
ceipt for  21511.  18s.  which  he  offers  in  bar,  to  so  much 
of  the  plaintiff's  demand. 

3.  In  his  third  plea,  he  sets  out  the  act  of  forfeiture, 
passed  by  the  assembly  on  the  3d  of  May,  1779,  where- 
by it  was,  among  other  things,  enacted,  "  that  all  the 
property,  real  and  personal,  within  the  commonwealth, 
belonging  at  that  time  to  any  British  subject  should  be 
deemed  to  be  vested  in  the  commonwealth;"  as  also  the 
act  of  the  6th  of  May,  1 782,  whereby  it  was  enacted, 
"  that  no  demand  whatsoever,  originally  due  to  a  sub- 
ject of  Great  Britain,  should  be  recoverable  in  any  court 
in  this  commonwealth,  although  the  same  might  be 
transferred  to  a  citizen  of  this  state,  or  to  any  other  per- 
son capable  of  maintaining  such  action,  unless  the 
assignment  had  been  or  might  be  made  for  a  valuable 
consideration  bona  fide  paid  before  the  first  of  May, 


LIFE  OP  HENRY.  317 

1777:"  and  the  plea  insists,  that  the  debt  in  the  decla- 
ration mentioned,  was  personal  property  of  a  British 
subject,  forfeited  to  the  commonwealth  under  the 
first  mentioned  act,  and  a  demand,  whose  recovery  in 
the  courts  of  the  commonwealth,  was  barred  by  the 
last. 

4.  The  fourth  plea  takes  the  ground,  that  the  king 
of  Britain  and  his  subjects  were  still  alien  enemies,  and 
that  the  state  of  war  still  continued,  on  the  ground  of 
the  several  direct  violations  of  the  definitive  treaty  of 
peace,  which  follow: — 1.  In  continuing  to  carry  off  the 
negroes  in  his  possession,  the  property  of  American 
citizens,  and  refusing  to  deliver  them,  or  permit  the 
owners  to  take  them,  according  to  the  express  stipula- 
tions of  that  treaty: — 2.  In  the  forcible  detention  of  the 
forts  Niagara  and  Detroit,  and  the  adjacent  territory: — 
3.  In  supplying  the  Indians,  who  were  at  war  with  the 
United  States,  with  arms  and  ammunition,  furnished 
within  the  territories  of  the  United  States,  to  wit,  at  the 
forts  Detroit  and  Niagara,  and  at  other  forts  and  sta- 
tions forcibly  held  by  the  troops  and  armies  of  the 
king,  within  the  United  States,  and  in  purchasing  from 
the  Indians,  within  the  territories  aforesaid,  the  plunder 
taken  by  them  in  war,  from  the  United  States,  and  the 
persons  of  American  citizens  made  prisoners;  which 
several  infractions,  the  plea  contends,  had  abolished 
the  treaty  of  peace,  and  placed  Great  Britain  and  the 
United  States,  in  a  state  of  war;  and  that  hence,  the 
plaintiff,  being  an  alien  enemy,  had  no  right  to  sue  in 
the  courts  of  the  United  States. 

5.  The  fifth  plea  sets  forth,  that  at  the  time  of  con- 
tracting the  debt  in  the  declaration  mentioned,  the 
plaintiff  and  the  defendant  were  fellow-subjects  of  the 
same  king  and  government:  that  on  the  fourth  of  July 


318 


SKETCHES  OF  THE 


1776,  the  government  of  the  British  monarch  in  this 
country  was  dissolved,  and  the  co-allegiance  of  the  par- 
ties severed;  whereby  the  plea  contends,  that  the  debt 
in  the  declaration  mentioned  was  annulled. 

To  the  second  plea  the  plaintiff  replied,  insisting  on 
the  treaty  of  peace  of  1 783,  whereby  it  was  stipulated 
that  creditors  on  either  side  should  meet  with  no  lawful 
impediment  to  the  recovery  of  the  full  value,  in  sterling 
money,  of  all  bona  fide  debts,  theretofore  contracted; 
and  also  on  the  constitution  of  the  United  States  of 
1787,  by  which  it  had  been  expressly  declared,  that 
treaties  which  were  tfwn  made,  or  which  should  there- 
after be  made,  under  the  authority  of  the  United  States, 
should  be  tJw  supreme  law  of  the  land,  any  thing  in  the 
constitution,  or  the  laws  of  any  state  to  the  contrary 
notwithstanding. 

The  defendant  rejoined,  that  the  treaty  had  been 
annulled  by  the  infractions  of  it  on  the  part  of  Great 
Britain,  and  so  could  not  aid  the  cause  of  the  plaintiff; — 
and  farther,  that  the  debt  in  the  declaration  mentioned 
was  not  bona  fide  due,  and  owing  to  the  plaintiff  at  the 
date  of  the  treaty,  in  so  much  as  the  same  (or  at  least 
2151/.  18s.  of  it)  had  been  discharged  by  the  payment 
set  forth  in  the  second  plea;  and  hence  that  it  was  not 
a  subsisting  debt,  within  the  terms  and  provisions  of  the 
treaty. 

To  this  rejoinder,  as  also  to  the  third,  fourth,  and 
fifth  pleas  of  the  defendant,  the  plaintiff  demurred;  and 
the  cause  came  on  to  be  argued,  on  these  demurrers, 
at  Richmond  on  the  24th  of  November  1791. 

The  Virginian  reader  will  readily  estimate  the  splen- 
dour and  power  of  the  discussion  in  this  case,  when  he 
learns  the  names  of  the  counsel  engaged  in  it:  on  the 
part  of  the  plaintiff  then,  were  Mr.  Ronald,  Mr.  Baker, 


LIFE    OF    HENRY.  319 

Mr.  Wickham,  and  Mr.  Starke;  and  on  that  of  the 
defendant,  Mr.  Henry,  Mr.  Marshall,  (the  present  chief 
justice  of  the  United  States)  Mr.  Alexander  Campbell, 
Mr.  Innis,  the  attorney  general  of  Virginia:  I  mention 
their  names  in  the  order  in  which  they  spoke  on  their 
respective  sides. 

The  cause  was  opened  with  great  fairness  and  abi- 
lity, by  Mr.  Ronald  and  Mr.  Baker,  in  succession;  they 
were  answered  by  all  the  counsel  of  the  defendant;  and 
Mr.  Wickham,  Mr.  Starke,  and  Mr.  Baker  were  heard 
in  the  reply. 

The  opening  counsel  made  the  following  points: 

First,  That  debts  were  not  a  subject  of  confiscation, 
in  war. 

Secondly,  That  if  they  were,  Virginia  at  the  time  of 
passing  the  acts  relied  on  by  the  defendant,  was  not  a 
sovereign  and  independent  state;  Great  Britain,  not 
having  at  that  time  assented  to  her  independence ;  and 
hence,  that  she  had  not  the  power  of  legislating  away 
the  debts  of  fellow-subjects,  not  represented  in  her 
legislative  councils — which  councils  were  themselves,  a 
usurpation,  in  the  eye  of  the  law. 

Thirdly,  That  if  debts  were  subject  to  confiscation, 
and  Virginia  were  competent  to  pass  laws  to  that  effect, 
she  had  not  done  so;  and  Mr.  Baker,  particularly,  en- 
tered into  a  minute  and  ingenious  scrutiny  of  the  lan- 
guage of  the  several  acts  of  assembly,  to  prove  that,  so 
far  from  having  been  forfeited,  the  debts  were  re- 
cognized as  existing  British  debts  down  to  the  year 
1782. 

Fourthly,  That  if  all  these  points  were  against  the 
plaintiff,  the  right  of  recovering  those  debts  was  re- 
stored by  the  treaty  of  1783,  and  the  constitution  of 


320  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

the  United  States,  which  recognized  that  treaty  as  the 
supreme  law  of  the  land;  and, 

Fifthly,  That  the  alleged  infractions  of  the  treaty  on 
the  part  of  Great  Britain,  did  not  produce  the  effect  of 
abolishing  the  treaty;  that  this  was  a  national  concern, 
with  which  the  individual  plaintiff  and  defendant  had 
nothing  to  do;  that  the  question  of  infraction  was  one 
to  be  decided  by  the  supreme  power  of  the  nation  only, 
and  one  of  which  the  court  could  not,  with  any  pro- 
priety, take  cognizance. 

Mr.  Baker  closed  his  opening  speech  on  Thursday 
evening  the  24th  of  November,  and  it  was  publicly 
understood  that  Mr.  Henry  was  to  commence  his  reply 
on  the  next  day.  The  legislature  was  then  in  session; 
but  when  1 1  o'clock,  the  hour  for  the  meeting  of  the 
court,  arrived,  the  speaker  found  himself  without  a 
house  to  do  business.  All  his  authority  and  that 
of  his  sergeant  at  arms  were  unavailing  to  keep  the 
members  in  their  seats;  every  consideration  of  public 
duty  yielded  to  the  anxiety  which  they  felt,  in  common 
with  the  rest  of  their  fellow-citizens,  to  hear  this  great 
man  on  this  truly  great  and  extensively  interesting 
question.  Accordingly,  when  the  court  was  ready  to 
proceed  to  business,  the  court  room  of  the  capitol,  large 
as  it  is,  was  insufficient  to  contain  the  vast  concourse 
that  was  pressing  to  enter  it.  The  portico,  and  the  area 
in  which  the  statue  of  Washington  stands,  were  filled 
with  a  disappointed  crowd,  who  nevertheless  maintained 
their  stand  without.  In  the  court  room  itself,  the  judges, 
through  condescension  to  the  public  anxiety,  relaxed 
the  rigour  of  respect  which  they  were  in  the  habit  of 
exacting,  and  permitted  the  vacant  seats  of  the  bench, 
and  even  the  windows  behind  it,  to  be  occupied  by  the 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  321 

impatient  multitude.  The  noise  and  tumult  occasioned 
by  seeking  a  more  favourable  station  was  at  length 
hushed,  and  the  profound  silence  which  reigned  within 
the  room  gave  notice  to  those  without,  that  the  orator 
had  risen,  or  was  on  the  point  of  rising.  Every  eye  in 
front  of  the  bar  was  rivetted  upon  him  with  the  most 
eager  attention:  and  so  still  and  deep  was  the  silence, 
that  every  one  might  hear  the  throbbing  of  his  own 
heart.  Mr.  Henry  however,  appeared  wholly  uncon- 
scious that  all  this  preparation  was  on  his  account,  and 
rose  with  as  much  simplicity  and  composure,  as  if  the 
occasion  had  been  one  of  ordinary  occurrence.  No- 
thing can  be  moreplain,  modest,  and  unaffected,  than 
his  exordium: — "  I  stand  here,  may  it  please  your  ho- 
nours, to  support  according  to  my  power,  that  side  of 
the  question  which  respects  the  American  debtor.  I  beg 
leave  to  beseech  the  patience  of  this  honourable  court; 
because  the  subject  is  very  great  and  important,  and 
because  I  have  not  only  the  greatness  of  the  subject  to 
consider,  but  those  numerous  observations  which  have 
come  from  the  opposing  counsel  to  answer.  Thus 
therefore,  the  matter  proper  for  my  discussion  is 
unavoidably  accumulated.  Sir,  there  is  a  circumstance 
in  this  case,  that  is  more  to  be  deplored  than  that  which 
I  have  just  mentioned;  and  that  is  this: — Those  animo- 
sities, which  the  injustice  of  the  British  nation  hath 
produced,  and  which  I  had  well  hoped  would  never 
again  be  the  subject  of  discussion,  are  necessarily 
brought  forth.  The  conduct  of  that  nation,  which  bore 
so  hard  upon  us  in  the  late  contest,  becomes  once  more 
the  subject  of  investigation.  I  know,  sir,  how  well  it 
becomes  a  liberal  man  and  a  Christian  to  forget  and  to 
forgive.     As  individuals,  professing  a  holy  religion,  it  is 

our  bounden  duty  to  forgive  injuries  done  us  as  indi- 

s  s 


322  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

victuals.  But,  when  to  the  character  of  Christian  you 
add  the  character  of  patriot,  you  are  in  a  different  situa- 
tion. Our  mild  and  holy  system  of  religion  inculcates 
an  admirable  maxim  of  forbearance.  If  your  enemy 
smites  one  cheek,  turn  the  other  to  him.  But  you  must 
stop  there.  You  cannot  apply  this  to  your  country. 
As  members  of  a  social  community,  this  maxim  does 
not  apply  to  you.  When  you  consider  injuries  done  to 
your  country,  your  political  duty  tells  you  of  vengeance. 
Forgive  as  a  private  man,  but  never  forgive  public  inju- 
ries. Observations  of  this  nature  are  exceedingly  un- 
pleasant, but  it  is  my  duty  to  use  them." 

With  the  same  primeval  simplicity,  he  enters  upon 
the  argument;  not  making  a  formal  division  of  the  whole 
subject,  but  merely  announcing  the  single  proposition 
which  he  was  about  to  maintain,  for  the  time;  thus,  im- 
mediately after  the  exordium  which  has  been  quoted,  he 
proceeds  thus: 

"  The  first  point  which  I  shall  endeavour  to  establish 
will  be,  that  debts,  in  common  wars,  become  subject  to 
forfeiture;  and  if  forfeited  in  common  wars,  much  more 
must  they  be  so,  in  a  revolution  war,  as  the  late  contest 
was.  In  considering  this  subject,  it  will  be  necessary  to 
define  what  a  debt  is. — I  mean  by  it  an  engagement,  or 
promise  by  one  man  to  pay  to  another,  for  a  valuable 
consideration,  an  adequate  price.  By  a  contract  thus 
made,  for  a  valuable  consideration,  there  arises  what, 
in  the  law  phrase  is  called  a  lien,  on  the  body  and  goods 
of  the  promissor  or  debtor.  This  interest  which  the 
creditor  becomes  entitled  to,  in  the  goods  and  body  of 
his  debtor,  is  such  as  may  be  taken  from  the  creditor,  if 
lie  be  found  the  subject  of  a  hostile  country.     This 


LIFE    OF   HENRV.  o2$ 

position  is  supported  by  the  following  authorities/" 
He  then  cites  and  reads  copious  extracts  from  Gro- 
tius  and  Vattel,  which  seem  to  support  his  position  de- 
cisively— and  then  proceeds  thus:  "  This  authority 
decides  in  the  most  clear  and  satisfactory  manner,  that, 
as  a  nation,  we  had  powers  as  extensive  and  unlimited 
as  any  nation  on  earth.  This  great  writer,  after  stating 
the  equality  and  independence  of  nations,  and  who  are, 
and  who  are  not  enemies,  does  away  the  distinction 
between  corporeal  and  incorporeal  rights,  and  declares 
that  war  gives  the  same  right  over  the  debts,  as  over  the 
other  goods  of  an  enemy.  He  illustrates  his  doctrine 
by  the  instance  of  Alexander^  remitting  to  the  Thessa- 
lians,  a  debt  due  by  them  to  the  Theban  common- 
wealth—This is  a  case  in  point — For  supposing  the 
subjects  of  Alexander  had  been  indebted  to  the  The- 
bans,  might  he  not  have  remitted  the  debts  due  by 
them  to  that  people,  as  well  as  the  debts  due  them  by 
his  allies,  the  Thessalians?  Let  me  not  be  told  that  he 
was  entitled  to  the  goods  of  the  Thebans,  because  he 
had  conquered  them.  If  he  could  remit  a  debt  due  by 
those  whose  claim  of  friendship  was  so  inferior,  those 
who  were  only  attached  to  him  by  the  feeble  ties  of 
contingent  and  temporary  alliance — if  his  Macedonians, 
his  immediate  and  natural  subjects,  were  indebted  to 
the  Thebans,  could  he  not  have  remitted  their  debts? 
This  author  states  in  clear,  unequivocal  terms,  by  fair 
inference  and  unavoidable  deduction,  that  when  two 
nations  are  at  war,  either  nation  has  a  right,  according 
to  the  laws  of  nature  and  nations,  to  remit  to  its  own 
citizens,  debts  which  they  may  owe  to  the  enemy.  If 
this  point  wanted  further  elucidation — it  is  pointedly 
proved  by  the  authority  which  I  first  quoted  from  Gro- 
tius,  that  it  is  an  inseparable  concomitant  of  sovereign 


324  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

power,  that  debts,  and  contracts  similar  to  those  which 
existed  in  America,  at  the  time  the  war  with  Great 
Britain  broke  out,  may,  in  virtue  of  the  eminent  domain 
or  right,  be  cancelled  and  destroyed.  c  A  king  has  a 
greater  right  in  the  goods  of  his  subjects,  for  the  public 
advantage,  than  the  proprietors  themselves.  And  when 
the  exigency  of  the  state  requires  a  supply,  every  man  is 
mote  obliged  to  contribute  towards  it,  than  to  satisfy  his 
creditors.  The  sovereign  may  discharge  a  debtor  from 
the  obligation  of  paying,  either  for  a  certain  time  or  for 
ever/  What  language  can  be  more  expressive  than  this? 
Can  the  mind  of  man  conceive  any  thing  more  compre- 
hensive? Rights  are  of  two  sorts,  private  and  inferior — 
or  eminent  and  superior,  such  as  the  community  hold 
over  the  persons  and  estates  of  its  members  for  the 
common  benefit.  The  latter  is  paramount  to  the  for- 
mer.— A  king  or  chief  of  a  nation,  has  a  greater  right 
than  the  owner  himself,  over  any  property  in  the  nation. 
The  individual  who  owns  private  property  cannot  dis- 
pose of  it,  contrary  to  the  will  of  his  sovereign,  to  injure 
the  public.  This  author  is  known  to  be  no  advocate 
for  tyranny,  yet  he  mentions  that  a  king  has  a  superior 
power  over  the  property  in  his  nation,  and  that  by  vir- 
tue thereof,  he  may  discharge  his  subjects  for  ever  from 
debts  which  they  owe  to  an  enemy.  . 

"  The  instance  which  our  author  derives  from  the 
Roman  history,  affords  a  striking  instance  of  the  length 
to  which  the  necessities  and  exigencies  of  a  nation  will 
warrant  it  to  go.  It  was  a  juncture  critical  to  the  Roman 
affairs.  But  their  situation  was  not  more  critical  or 
dangerous  than  ours,  at  the  time  these  debts  were  con- 
fiscated. It  was  after  the  total  defeat,  and  dreadful 
slaughter  at  Cannse,  when  the  state  was  in  the  most 
imminent  danger.     Our  situation  in  the  late  war  was 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  325 

equally  perilous.  Every  consideration  must  give  way 
to  the  public  safety.  That  admirable  Roman  maxim, 
sahispopuli  suprema  lex,  governed  that  people  in  every 
emergency.  It  is  a  maxim  that  ought  to  govern  every 
community.  It  was  not  peculiar  to  the  Roman  people. 
The  impression  came  from  the  same  source  from 
which  we  derive  our  existence.  Self-preservation,  that 
great  dictate  implanted  in  us  by  nature,  must  regulate 
our  conduct;  we  must  have  a  power  to  act  according  to 
our  necessities,  and  it  remains  for  human  judgment  to 
decide  what  are  the  proper  occasions  for  the  exercise 
of  this  power.  Call  to  your  recollection  our  situation 
during  the  late  arduous  contest  Was  it  not  necessary 
in  our  day  of  trial,  to  go  to  the  last  iota  of  human 
right?  The  Romans  fought  for  their  altars  and  house- 
hold gods.  By  these  terms  they  meant  every  thing 
dear  and  valuable  to  men.  Was  not  our  stake  as  im- 
portant as  theirs  ?  But  many  other  nations  engage  in  the 
most  bloody  wars,  for  the  most  trivial  and  frivolous 
causes.  If  other  nations  who  carried  on  wars  for  a 
mere  point  of  honour,  or  a  punctilio  of  gallantry,  were 
warranted  in  the  exercise  of  this  power;  were  not  we, 
who  fought  for  every  thing  most  inestimable  and  valua- 
ble to  mankind,  justified  in  using  it?  Our  finances 
were  in  a  more  distressing  situation  than  theirs  at  this 
awful  period  of  our  existence.  Our  war  was  in  opposi- 
tion to  the  most  grievous  oppression — we  resisted,  and 
our  resistance  was  approved  and  blessed  by  heaven. 
The  most  illustrious  men  who  have  considered  human 
affairs,  when  they  have  revolved  human  rights,  and 
considered  how  far  a  nation  is  warranted  to  act  in 
cases  of  emergency,  declare  that  the  only  ingredient 
essential  to  the  rectitude  and  validity  of  its  measures  is, 
that  they  be  for  the  public  good.  I  need  hardly  observe 


326  SKETCHES    OF   THE 

that  the  confiscation  of  these  debts  was  for  the  public 
good.  Those  who  decided  it,  were  constitutionally 
enabled  to  determine  it.  Grotius  shows  that  you  have 
not  only  power  over  the  goods  of  your  enemies,  but 
according  to  the  exigency  of  affairs,  you  may  seize  the 
property  of  your  citizens."  After  reading  the  opposite 
passage  from  Grotius,  he  says — "  I  read  these  authori- 
ties to  prove,  that  the  property  of  an  enemy  is  liable  to 
forfeiture,  and  that  debts  are  as  much  the  subject  of 
hostile  contest  as  tangible  property.  And  Vattel,  p. 
484,  as  before  mentioned,  pointedly  enumerates  tights 
and  debts  among  such  property  of  the  enemy,  as  is 
liable  to  confiscation.  To  this  last  author,  I  must 
frequently  resort  in  the  course  of  my  argument  I 
put  great  confidence  in  him,  from  the  weight  of  his 
authority, — for  he  is  universally  respected  by  all  the 
wise  and  enlightened  of  mankind,  being  no  less  cele- 
brated for  his  great  judgment  and  knowledge,  than  for 
his  universal  philanthropy.  One  of  his  first  principles 
of  the  law  of  nations,  is  a  perfect  equality  of  rights 
among  nations:  that  each  nation  ought  to  be  left  in  the 
peaceable  enjoyment  of  that  liberty  it  has  derived  from 
nature.  I  refer  your  honours  to  his  preliminary  dis- 
course from  6th  to  the  12th  page,  and  as  it  will  greatly 
elucidate  the  subject,  and  tend  to  prove  the  position  I 
have  attempted  to  support,  I  will  read  section  17,  18, 
19,  and  20  of  this  discourse."  Having  read  these 
sections,  he  touches  transiently,  but  powerfully, 
the  objection  to  the  want  of  national  independence 
to  pass  the  laws  of  forfeiture,  till  that  independence 
was  assented  to  by  the  king  of  Great  Britain. 
u  When  the  war  commenced,"  said  lie,  "  these  things, 
called  British  debts,  lost  their  quality  of  external 
obligation,  and  became  matters  of  internal  obligation, 


LIFE    OF    HENRY.  327 

because  the  creditors  had  no  right  of  constraint  over 
the  debtors.     They  were  before  the  war,  matters  of 
perfect  external  obligation,  accompanied  by  a  right  of 
constraint;  but  the  war  having  taken  away  this  right  of 
constraint  over  the  debtors,  they  were  changed  into  an 
internal  obligation,  binding  the  conscience  only.     For 
it  will  not  surely  be  denied,  that  the  creditor  lost  the 
right  of  constraint  over  his  debtor.  From  the  authority 
of  this  respectable  author,  therefore — from  the  clearest 
principles  of  the  laws  of  nature  and  nations,  these  debts 
became   subject   to   forfeiture   or   remission.     Those 
authors  state,  in  language  as  emphatic  and  nervous  as 
the  human  mind  can  conceive,  or  the  human  tongue 
can  utter,  that  independent  nations  have  the  power  of 
confiscating  the  property  of  their  enemies:  and  so  had 
this  gallant  nation.     America,  being  a  sovereign  and 
complete  nation,  in  all  its  forms  and  departments,  pos- 
sessed all  the  rights  of  the  most  powerful  and  ancient 
nations.     Respecting  the  power  of  legislation,  it  was  a 
nation  complete,  and  without  human  controul.  Respect- 
ing public  justice,  it  was  a  nation  blessed  by  heaven, 
with  the  experience  of  past  times;  not  like  those  na- 
tions, whose  crude  systems  of  jurisprudence  originated 
in  the  ages  of  barbarity  and  ignorance  of  human  rights. 
America  was  a  sovereign  nation,  when  her  sons  stepped 
forth,  to  resist  the  unjust  hand  of  oppression,  and  de- 
clared themselves  independent.     The  consent  of  Great 
Britain  was  not  necessary,  (as  the  gentlemen  on  the 
other  side  urge,)  to  create  us  a  nation.     Yes,  sir,  we 
were  a  nation,  long  before  the  monarch  of  that  little 
island  in  the  Atlantic  ocean,  gave  his  puny  assent  to  it. 
(These  words  he  accompanied  by  a  most  significant 
gesture — rising  on  tiptoe — pointing  as  to  a  vast  distance, 
and  half  closing  his  eye-lids,  as  if  endeavouring,  with 


328  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

extreme  difficulty,  to  draw  a  sight  on  some  object 
almost  too  small  for  vision — and  blowing  out  the  words, 
puny  assent,  with  his  lips  curled  with  unutterable  con- 
tempt.) America  was  long  before  that  time  a  great  and 
gallant  nation.  In  the  estimation  of  other  nations,  we 
were  so:  the  beneficent  hand  of  heaven  enabled  her  to 
triumph,  and  secured  to  her  the  most  sacred  rights 
mortals  can  enjoy.  When  these  illustrious  authors, 
these  friends  to  human  nature,  these  kind  instructors  of 
human  errors  and  frailties,*  contemplate  the  obligations 
and  corresponding  rights  of  nations,  and  define  the  in- 
ternal right,  which  is  without  constraint  and  not  bind- 
ing, do  they  not  understand  such  rights  as  these,  which 
the  British  creditors  now  claim?  Here  this  man  tells 
us  what  conscience  says  ought  to  be  done,  and  what  is 
compulsory.  These  British  debts  must  come  within 
the  grasp  of  human  power,  like  all  other  human  things. 
They  ceased  to  have  that  external  quality,  and  fell  into 
that  mass  of  power,  which  belonged  to  our  legislature 
by  the  law  of  nations." 

He  comes  now  to  a  very  serious  obstacle,  which  it 
required  both  address  and  vigour  to  remove.  Vattel, 
whom  he  had  cited  to  support  his  position  of  the  forfeit- 
able character  of  debts,  and  who,  so  far  as  Mr.  Henry 
had  read  him,  does  support  him  explicitly,  annexes  a 
qualification  to  the  principle,  which  had  been  pressed 
with  greaj  power  by  the  gentlemen  who  opened  the 
cause.  The  curiosity  of  the  reader  will  be  gratified  by 
seeing  the  manner  in  which  he  surmounted  the  objec- 
tion.    "  But  we  are  told,  that,  admitting  this  to  be  true 


*  In  the  second  argument,  he  eulogized  the  writers  on  the  laws  of  nations, 
"  as  benevolent  spirits,  who  had  held  up  the  torch  of  science  to  a  benighted 
world," 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  329 

in  the  fullest  latitude,  yet  the  customary  law  of  Europe 
is  against  the  exercise  of  this  power  of  confiscation  of 
debts;  in  support  of  which  position,  they  rely  on  what 
is  added  by  Vattel,  p.  484.  Let  us  examine  what  he 
says: — c  The  sovereign  has  naturally  the  same  right 
over  what  his  subjects  may  be  indebted  to  enemies: 
therefore  he  may  confiscate  debts  of  this  nature,  if  the 
term  of  payment  happen  in  the  time  of  war,  or  at  least 
he  may  prohibit  his  subjects  from  paying  while  the  war 
lasts.  But  at  present,  in  regard  to  the  advantage  and 
safety  of  commerce,  all  the  sovereigns  of  Europe  have 
departed  from  this  rigour.  And  as  this  custom  has 
generally  been  received,  he  who  should  act  contrary  to  it, 
would  injure  the  public  faith;  for  strangers  trusted  his 
subjects  only,  from  a  firm  persuasion,  that  the  general 
custom  would  be  observed/  Excellent  man!  and  excel- 
lent sentiments!'  The  principle  cannot  be  denied  to  be 
good;  but  when  you  apply  it  to  the  case  before  the  court, 
does  it  warrant  their  conclusions?  The  author  says, 
that  although  a  nation  has  a  right  to  confiscate  debts 
due  by  its  people  to  an  enemy,  yet,  at  present,  tlie  cus- 
tom of  Europe  is  contrary.  It  is  not  enough  for  this 
author  to  tell  us  that  this  custom  is  contrary  to  the 
right.  He  admits  the  right.  Let  us  see  whether  this 
custom  has  existence  here.  Vattel,  having  spoken  of 
the  necessary  law  of  nations,  which  is  immutable,  and 
the  obligations  whereof  are  indispensable,  proceeds  to 
distinguish  the  several  other  kinds  of  natural  law  in  the 
same  preliminary  discourse,  p.  11  and  12,  thus: 

'  Certain  maxims  and  customs  consecrated  by  long 
use,  and  observed  by  nations,  between  each  other,  as  a 
kind  of  law,  form  this  customary  law  of  nations,  or  the 
custom  of  nations.  This  law  is  founded  on  a  tacit  con- 
sent, or  if  you  will,  on  a  tacit  convention  of  the  nations 

t  t 


330  SKETCHES    OP   THE 

that  observe  it,  with  respect  to  each  other.  Whence  it 
appears,  that  it  is  only  binding  to  those  nations  that  have 
adopted  it,  and  that  is  not  universal,  any  more  than 
conventional  laws.  It  must  be  here  also  observed  of 
this  customary  laiv,  that  the  particulars  relating  to  it, 
do  not  belong  to  a  systematic  treatise  on  the  law  of 
nations,  but  that  we  ought  to  confine  ourselves  to  the 
giving  a  general  theory  of  it;  that  is,  to  the  rules 
which  here  ought  to  be  observed,  as  well  with  re- 
spect to  its  effects,  as  in  relation  to  the  matter  itself: 
and  in  this  last  respect,  these  rules  will  serve  to  distin- 
guish the  lawful  and  innocent  customs,  from  those  that 
are  unjust  and  illegal! 

e  When  a  custom  is  generally  established,  either  be- 
tween all  the  polite  nations  in  the  world,  or  only  be- 
tween those  of  a  certain  continent,  as  of  Europe,  for 
example;  or  those  who  have  a  more  frequent  corres- 
pondence; if  that  custom  is  in  its  own  nature  indifferent, 
and  much  more,  if  it  be  a  wise  and  useful  one,  it  ought 
to  be  obligatory  on  all  those  nations  who  are  considered 
as  having  given  their  consent  to  it.  And  they  are  bound 
to  observe  it,  with  respect  to  each  other,  while  they  have 
not  expressly  declared  that  they  will  not  adhere  to  it. 
But  if  that  custom  contains  any  tiling  unjust  or  illegal, 
it  is  of  no  force;  and  every  nation  is  under  an  obligation 
to  abandon  it,  nothing  being  able  to  oblige  or  permit  a 
nation  to  violate  a  natural  law. 

'  These  three  kinds  of  the  law  of  nations,  voluntary, 
conventional,  and  customary,  together,  compose  the 
positive  law  of  nations.  For  they  all  proceed  from  the 
volition  of  nations;  the  voluntary  law,  from  their  pre- 
sumed consent:  the  conventional  law,  from  an  express 
consent;  and  the  customary  law,  from  a  tacit  consent: 
and  as  there  can  be  no  other  manner  of  deducing  any 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  331 

law  from  the  will  of  nations,  there  are  only  these  three 
kinds  of  the  positive  laiv  of  nations' 

"  This  excellent  author,  after  having  stated  the  volun- 
tary law  of  nations,  to  be  the  result  of  the  equality  of 
nations,  and  the  conventional  law,  to  be  particular  com- 
pacts or  treatises,  binding  only  on  the  contracting  par- 
ties, declares,  that  the  customary  law  of  tuitions  is  only 
binding  to  tlwse  nations  that  have  adopted  it:  that  it  is 
a  particular  and  not  an  universal  law;  that  it  applies 
only  to  distinct  nations.  The  case  of  Alexander  and 
the  Thebans  is  founded  on  the  general  law  of  nations, 
applicable  to  nations  at  war.  It  is  enough  for  me  then 
to  show,  that  America,  being  at  war,  was  entitled  to  the 
privilege  of  national  law.  But,  says  Vattel,  the  present 
state  of  European  refinement,  controuls  the  general  law 
(of  which  he  had  been  before  speaking.)  We  know 
that  the  customary  law  of  nations  can  only  bind  those 
who  are  parties  to  the  custom.  In  the  year  1 776,  when 
America  announced  her  will  to  be  free,  or  in  the  year 
1777,  when  the  law  concerning  British  debts  passed, 
was  there  a  customary  law  of  America,  to  this  effect? 
Or  were  the  customary  laws  of  Europe  binding  on 
America]  Were  we  a  party  to  any  such  customary 
laiv?  Was  there  any  thing  in  our  constitution  or  laws, 
which  tied  up  our  hands?  No,  sir.  To  make  this 
customary  law  obligatory,  the  assent  of  all  the  parties 
to  be  bound  by  it  is  necessary.  There  must  be  an 
interchange  of  it.  It  is  not  for  one  nation  or  community 
to  say  to  another,  you  are  bound  by  this  law,  because 
our  kingdom  approves  of  it.  It  must  not  only  be  red- 
procal  in  its  advantages  and  principles,  but  it  must  have 
been  reciprocal  in  its  exercise.  Virginia  could  not, 
therefore,  be  bound  by  it.  Let  us  see  whether  it  could 
be  a  hard  case  on  the  British  creditors,  that  this  cus- 


33,3  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

tomary  law  of  nations  did  not  apply  in  their  favour. 
Were  these  debts  contracted  from  a  persuasion  of  its 
observance?  Did  the  creditors  trust  to  this  customary 
law  of  nations?  No,  sir.  They  trusted  to  what  they 
thought  as  firm,  the  statute  and  common  law  of 
England. — Victorious  and  successful  as  their  nation 
had  lately  been,  when  they,  in  their  pride  and  in- 
considerate self-confidence,  stretched  out  the  hand 
of  oppression,  their  subjects  placed  no  reliance  on 
the  customs  of  particular  nations.  They  put  confidence 
in  those  barriers  of  right,  which  were  derived  from  their 
own  nation.  Their  reliance  was,  that  the  tribunals  esta- 
blished  in  this  country,  under  the  same  royal  authority 
as  in  England,  would  do  them  justice.  If  we  were  not 
willing,  they  possessed  the  power  of  compelling  us  to 
do  them  justice.  The  debts  having  therefore,  not 
been  contracted  from  any  reliance  on  the  customary 
law  of  nations,  were  they  contracted  from  a  regard  c  to 
tfie  rights  of  commerce?'  From  a  view  of  promoting 
the  commerce  of  those  little  things  called  colonies?  This 
regard  could  not  have  been  the  ground  they  were  con- 
tracted on,  for  their  conduct  evinced  that  they  ivished 
to  take  the  right  of  commerce  from  us.  What  other 
ingredient  remains  to  show  the  operation  of  this  custom 
in  their  favour?  The  book  speaks  of  strangers  trusting 
subjects  of  a  different  nation,  from  a  reliance  on  the 
observance  of  the  customary  law.  The  fact  here  was, 
that  fellow-subjects  trusted  us,  on  the  footing  just 
stated;  trusting  to  the  existing  compulsory  process  of 
law,  not  relying  on  a  passive  inert  custom.  A  fear- 
ful, plodding,  sagacious  trader,  would  not  rely  on  so 
flimsy,  so  uncertain  a  dependence.  Something  similar 
to  what  he  thought  positive  satisfaction,  he  relied  on. 
Were  we  not  subject  to  the  same  king?    The  cases  are 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  333 

then  at  variance.  He  states  the  custom  to  exist  for 
the  advantage  of  commerce,  and  that  a  departure  from 
it  would  injure  the  public  faith.  Public  faith  is  in  this 
case  out  of  the  question.  The  public  faith  was  not 
pledged — it  could  not  therefore  be  injured.  I  have 
already  read  to  your  honours  from  the  11th  page  of 
the  preliminary  discourse  of  Vattel,  '  that  the  customary 
law  of  nations  is  only  binding  on  those  who  have 
adopted  it,  and  that  it  is  not  universal,  any  more 
than  conventional  laws.'  It  is  evident  we  could  not 
be  bound  by  any  convention  or  treaty  to  which  we  our- 
selves were  not  a  party:  and  from  this  authority  it  is 
equally  obvious,  that  we  could  not  be  bound  by  any 
customary  law  to  which  we  were  not  parties.  I  think 
therefore,  with  great  submission  to  the  court,  that  the 
right  for  which  I  contended,  that  is,  that  in  common  wars 
between  independent  nations,  either  of  the  contending 
parties  has  a  right  to  confiscate  or  remit  debts  due  by 
its  people  to  the  enemy,  is  not  shaken  by  the  customary 
law  of  nations,  as  far  as  it  regards  us,  because  the  cus- 
tom could  not  affect  us.  But  gentlemen  say  we  were 
not  completely  independent  till  the  year  1 783 !  To  take 
them  on  their  own  ground,  their  arguments  will  fail 
them.  There  is  a  customary  law  which  will  operate 
pretty  strongly  on  our  side  of  the  question.  What 
were  the  inducements  of  the  debtor?  On  what  did  the 
American  debtor  rely?  Sir,  he  relied  for  protection, 
on  that  system  of  common  and  statute  law  on  which 
the  creditors  depended.  Was  he  deceived  in  that  reli- 
ance? That  he  was  most  miserably  deceived,  I  believe 
will  not  admit  of  a  doubt.  The  customary  law  of  na- 
tions will  only  apply  to  distinct  nations,  mutually  con- 
senting thereto.  When  tyranny  attempted  to  rivet  her 
chains  upon  us,  and  we  boldly  broke  them  asunder,  we 


3Si  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

were  remitted  to  that  amplitude  of  freedom  which  the 
beneficent  hand  of  nature  gave  us.      We  were  not 
bound  by  fetters  which  are  of  benefit  to  one  party, 
while  they  are  destructive  to  the  other.     Would  it  be 
proper  that  we    should  be   bound,   and   they  unre- 
strained?"   As  a  still  farther  answer  to  the  objection, 
and  as  giving  the  only  rule  of  restraint  in  operating  on 
the  property  of  a  belligerent,  he  cites  the  following 
principle  from  Vattel,  and  applies  it  to  the  actual  state 
of  America.      "  Vattel,  book  the  3d,  ch.  8,  sect.  137, 
says,  that  the  lawful  end  gives  a  true  right  only  to  those 
means  which  are  necessary  for  obtaining  such  end. 
Whatever  exceeds  this,  is  censured  by  the  laws  of  na- 
ture as  faulty,  and  will  be  condemned  at  the  tribunal 
of  conscience.     Hence  it  is,  that  the  right  to  such  or 
such  acts  of  hostility,  varies  according  to  their  circum- 
stances.    What  is  just  and  perfectly  innocent  in  a  war, 
in  one  particular  situation,  is  not  always  so  in  another. 
Right  goes  hand  in  hand  with  necessity,  and  the  exi- 
gency of  the  case;  but  never  exceeds  it."  "This  sir,  is 
the  first  dictate  of  nature,  and  the  practise  of  nations; 
and  if  your  misfortunes  and  distresses  should  be  sad 
and  dreadful,  you  are  let  loose  from   those  common 
restraints  which  may  be  proper  on  common  occasions, 
in  order  to  preserve  the  great  rights  of  human  nature. 
This  is  laid  down  by  that  great  writer,  in  clear  and  un- 
equivocal terms.     If  then,  sir,  it  be  certain  from  a 
recurrence  to  facts,  that  it  was  necessary  for  America 
to  seize  on  British  property,  this  book  warrants  the 
legislature  of  this  state,  in  passing  those  confiscating  and 
prohibitory  laws.     I  need  only  refer  to  your  recollec- 
tion, for  our  pressing  situation  during  the  late  contest; 
and  happy  am  I,  that  this  all  important  question  comes 
on,  before  the  heads  of  those  who  were  actors  in  the 


LIFE    OP   HENRY.  335 

great  scene^  are  laid  in  the  dust.  An  uninformed  pos- 
terity would  be  unacquainted  with  the  awful  necessity, 
which  impelled  us  on.  If  the  means  were  within  reach — 
we  were  warranted  by  the  laws  of  nature  and  nations,  to 
use  them.  The  fact  was  that  we  were  attacked  by  one 
of  the  most  formidable  nations  under  heaven;  a  nation 
that  carried  terror  and  dread  with  its  thunder  to  both 
hemispheres."  (This  illustration  of  the  power  of  Great 
Britain  was,  if  we  may  trust  respectable  tradition,  much 
more  expanded  than  we  find  it  in  the  report;  and  such 
was  the  force  of  his  imagination,  and  the  irresistible 
energy  of  his  delivery  and  action,  that  the  audience 
now  felt  themselves  instinctively  recoiling  from  the 
tremendous  power  of  that  veiy  nation,  which  but  a 
short  time  before  had  been  exhibited  as  a  mere 
dot  in  the  Atlantic,  a  point  so  microscopic  as  to  be 
scarcely  visible  to  the  naked  eye:  he  proceeds  to 
close  the  first  member  of  his  first  point,  thus:)  "Our 
united  property  enabled  us  to  look  in  the  face 
that  mighty  people.  Dared  we  to  have  gone  in  opposi- 
tion to  them,  bound  hand  and  foot?  Would  we  have 
dared  to  resist  them,  fettered?  for  we  should  have  been 
fettered,  if  we  had  been  deprived  of  so  considerable  a 
part  of  our  little  stock  of  national  resources.  In  that 
most  critical  and  dangerous  emergency,  our  all  was  but 
a  little  thing.  Had  we  a  treasury — an  exchequer?  Had 
we  commerce?  Had  we  any  revenue?  Had  we  any 
thing  from  which  a  nation  could  draw  wealth?  No,  sir. 
Our  credit  became  the  scorn  of  our  foes.  However, 
the  efforts  of  certain  patriotic  characters,  (there  were 
not  a  few  of  them,  thank  heaven,)  gave  us  credit  among ' 
our  own  people.  But  we  had  not  a  farthing  to  spare. 
We  were  obliged  to  go  on  a  most  grievous  anticipation, 
the  weight  of  which  we  feel  at  this  day.   Recur  to  our 


336  SKETCHES    OF   THE 

actual  situation,  and  the  means  we  had  of  defending 
ourselves.  The  actual  situation  of  America  is  described 
here,  where  this  author  says,  '  that  right  goes  hand  in 
hand  with  necessity.'  The  necessity  being  great  and 
dreadful,  you  are  warranted  to  lay  hold  of  every  atom 
of  money  within  your  reach,  especially  if  it  be  the 
money  of  your  enemies.  It  is  prudent  and  necessary 
to  strengthen  yourselves  and  weaken  your  enemies. 
Vattel,  book  3d,  ch.  8,  sect.  1 38,  says,  '  the  business  of 
a  just  war  being  to  suppress  violence  and  injustice,  it 
gives  a  right  to  compel  by  force,  him  who  is  deaf  to  the 
voice  of  justice.  It  gives  a  right  of  doing  against  the 
enemy,  whatever  is  necessaiy  for  weakening  him — for 
disabling  him  from  making  any  farther  resistance  in 
support  of  his  injustice — and  the  most  effectual,  the 
most  proper  methods  may  be  chosen,  provided  they  have 
nothing  odious,  be  not  unlawful  in  themselves,  or  ex- 
ploded by  the  law  of  nature.'  Here  let  me  pause  for 
a  moment,  and  ask,  whether  it  be  odious  in  itself,  or 
exploded  by  the  law  of  nature,  to  seize  those  debts? 
No — because  the  money  was  taken  from  the  very  of- 
fenders. We  fought  for  the  great,  unalienable,  here- 
ditary rights  of  human  nature.  An  unwarrantable 
attack  was  made  upon  us.  An  attack,  not  only  not 
congenial  with  motherly  or  parental  tenderness,  but 
incompatible  with  the  principles  of  humanity  or  civiliza- 
tion. Our  defence  then  was  a  necessary  one.  What 
says  Vattel,  book  3d,  ch.  8,  sect.  136?  '  The  end  of  a 
just  war  is  to  revenge  or  prevent  injury;  that  is,  to  pro- 
cure by  force  the  justice  which  cannot  otherwise  be 
obtained;  to  compel  an  unjust  person  to  repair  an  injury 
already  done,  or  to  give  securities  against  any  wrong 
threatened  by  him.  On  a  declaration  of  war,  therefore, 
this  nation  has  a  right  of  doing  against  the  enemy  what- 


LIFE  OP  HENRY.  337 

ever  is  necessary  to  this  justifiable  end  of  bringing  him 
to  reason,  and  obtaining  justice  and  security  from  him/ 
We  have  taken  nothing  in  this  necessary  defence,  but 
from  the  very  offenders — those  who  unjustly  attacked 
us: — for  we  had  a  right  of  considering  every  individual 
of  the  British  nation  as  an  enemy.  This  I  prove  by 
the  same  great  writer,  p.  519,  sect.  139,  of  the  same 
book.  An  enemy  attacking  me  unjustly,  gives  me  an 
undoubted  right  of  repelling  his  violences;  and  he  who 
opposes  me  in  arms,  when  I  demand  only  my  right, 
becomes  himself  the  real  aggressor,  by  his  unjust 
resistance.  He  is  the  first  author  of  the  violence,  and 
obliges  me  to  make  use  of  force,  for  securing  myself 
against  the  wrongs  intended  me,  either  in  my  person  or 
possessions;  for  if  the  effects  of  this  force  proceed  so 
far  as  to  take  away  his  life,  he  owes  the  misfortune  to 
himself;  for  if,  by  sparing  him,  I  should  submit  to  the 
injury,  the  good  would  soon  become  the  prey  of  the 
wicked.  Hence  the  right  of  killing  enemies  in  a  just 
war  is  derived;  when  their  resistance  cannot  be  sup- 
pressed— when  they  are  not  to  be  reduced  by  milder 
methods,  there  is  a  right  of  taking  away  their  life.  Un- 
der the  name  of  enemies,  as  we  have  already  shown, 
are  comprehended  not  only  the  first  author  of  the  war, 
but  likewise  all  who  join  him,  and  fight  for  his  cause.' 
Thus  I  think  the  first  part  of  my  position  confirmed  and 
unshaken;  that  in  common  wars,  a  nation  not  restrained 
by  the  customary  law  of  nations,  has  a  right  to  confis- 
cate debts."  In  the  second  member  of  that  point,  he  is 
released  from  the  servility  of  quotation ;  and,  to  borrow 
a  phrase  of  his  own,  "  remitted  to  the  amplitude"  of  his 
natural  genius:  the  reader  will  therefore  be  amused  by 
a  more  copious  extract.  "  From  this  I  will  go  on  to  the 
other  branch  of  my  position.  That  if,  in  common  wars. 


338  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

debts  be  liable  to  forfeiture,  a  fortiori,  must  they  be  so,  in 
a  revolution  war?  Let  me  contrast  the  late  war  with  wars 
in  common.  According  to  those  people  called  kings,  wars 
in  common  are  systematic  and  produced  for  trifles;  for 
not  conforming  to  imaginary  honours;  because  you  have 
not  lowered  your  flag  before  him  at  sea;  or  for  a  sup- 
posed affront  to  the  person  of  an  ambassador.     Nations 
are  set  by  the  ears,  and  the  most  horrid  devastations  are 
brought  on  mankind,  for  the  most  frivolous  causes.     II' 
then,  when  small  matters  are  in  contest,  debts  be  for- 
feitable, what  must  have  accrued  to  us,  as  engaged  in 
the  late  revolution  war — a  war  commenced  in  attainder, 
perfidy  and  confiscation?  If  we  take  with  us  this  great 
principle  ofVattel,  that  right  goes  in  hand  icith  necessity, 
and  consider  the  peculiar  situation  of  the  American 
people,  we  will  find  reason  more  than  sufficient,  to  give 
us  a  right  of  confiscating  those  debts.     The  most  strik- 
ing peculiarity  attended  the  American  war.     In  the 
first  of  it,  we  were  stripped  of  every  municipal  right. 
Rights  and  obligations  are  correspondent,  co-extensive 
and  inseparable-— they  must  exist  together,  or  not  at  all 
— we  were  therefore,  when  stripped  of  all  our  municipal 
rights,  clear  of  every  municipal  obligation,  burden  and 
onerous  engagement.     If  then  the  obligation  be  gone, 
what  is  become  of  the  correspondent  right?  They  are 
mutually  gone."     (These  little  words,  "  they  are  mutu- 
ally gone/'  which  would  have  made  no  figure  in  the 
pronunciation  of  an  ordinary  speaker,  are  said  to  have 
formed  a  beautiful  picture,  as  delivered  by  Mr.  Henry: 
his  eyes  seemed  to  have  pursued  these  associated  objects 
to  the  extremest  verge  of  mortal  sight,  while  the  fall  of 
his  voice,  and  correspondent  fall  of  his  extended  hand, 
with    the    palm    downwards,    depicted    the   idea    of 
evanescence,   with  indescribable  force:  the  audience 


LIFE    OP   HENRY.  339 

might  imagine  that  they  saw  the  objects  at  the  very 
instant  when  they  vanished  in  the  distance,  and  became 
commingled  with  the  air:  and  all  this  too,  without  any 
affected  pause  to  give  it  effect;  without  any  apparent 
effort  on  his  part;  but  with  all  the  quickness  of  thought 
and  all  the  ease  of  nature.)  "  The  case  of  sovereign 
and  independent  nations  at  war,  is  far  different;  because 
there,  private  right  is  respected,  and  domestic  asylum 
held  sacred. — Was  it  the  case  in  our  war?  No,  sir. — 
Daggers  were  planted  in  your  chambers,  and  mischief 
death  and  destruction,  might  meet  you  at  your  fireside. 
There  is  an  essential  variance  between  the  late  war 
and  common  wars.  In  common  wars,  children  are 
not  obliged  to  fight  against  their  fathers,  nor  brothers 
against  brothers,  nor  kindred  against  kindred.  Our 
men  were  compelled,  contrary  to  the  most  sacred  ties 
of  humanity,  to  shed  the  blood  of  their  dearest  connec- 
tions. In  common  wars,  contending  parties  respect 
municipal  rights,  and  leave,  even  to  those  they  invade, 
the  means  of  paying  debts,  and  complying  with  obliga- 
tions: they  touch  not  private  property.  For  example, 
when  a  British  army  lands  in  France,  they  plunder 
nothing:  they  pay  for  what  they  have,  and  respect  the 
tribunals  of  justice,  unless  they  have  a  mind  to  be  call- 
ed a  savage  nation. — Were  we  thus  treated?  Were  we 
permitted  to  exercise  industry  and  to  collect  debts,  by 
which  we  might  be  enabled  to  pay  British  creditors? 
Had  we  a  power  to  pursue  commerce?  No,  sir. — What 
became  of  our  agriculture?  Our  inhabitants  were  mer- 
cilessly and  brutally  plundered,  and  our  enemies  pro- 
fessed to  maintain  their  army  by  those  means  only. 
Our  slaves  carried  away,  our  crops  burnt,  a  cruel  war 
carried  on  against  our  agriculture — disability  to  pay 
debts  produced  by  pillage  and  devastation,  contrary  to 


340  SKETCHES    OF   THE 

every  principle  of  national  law.  From  that  series  of 
plenty  in  which  we  had  been  accustomed  to  live  and  to 
revel,  we  were  plunged  into  eveiy  species  of  human 
calamity.  Our  lives  attacked — charge  of  rebels  fixed 
upon  us — confiscation  and  attainder  denounced  against 
the  whole  continent:  and  he  that  was  called  king  of 
England  sat  judge  upon  our  case — he  pronounced  his 
judgment,  not  like  those  to  whom  poetic  fancy  has  given 
existence — not  like  him  who  sits  in  the  infernal  regions, 
and  dooms  to  the  Stygian  lake  those  spirits  who  deserve 
it,  because  he  spares  the  innocent,  and  sends  some  to  the 
fields  of  Elysium — not  like  him  who  sat  in  ancient 
imperial  Rome,  and  wished  the  people  had  but  one 
neck,  that  he  might  at  one  blow  strike  off  their  heads, 
and  spare  himself  the  trouble  of  carnage  and  massacre, 
because  one  city  would  have  satisfied  his  vengeance — 
not  like  any  of  his  fellow-men,  for  nothing  would  satiate 
his  sanguinary  ferocity,  but  the  indiscriminate  destruc- 
tion of  a  whole  continent — involving  the  innocent  with 
the  guilty.  Yes,  he  sat  in  judgment  with  his  coadjutors, 
and  pronounced  proscription,  attainder,  and  forfeiture, 
against  men,  women,  and  even  children  at  the  breast. 
Is  not  this  description  pointedly  true,  in  all  its  parts? 
And  ivho  were  his  coadjutors  and  executioners  in  this 
strange  court  of  judicature?  Like  the  fiends  of  poetic 
imagination — Hessians,  Indians,  and  Negroes,  were 
his  coadjutors  and  executioners.  Is  there  any  thing  in 
this  sad  detail  of  offences,  which  is  unfounded?  Any 
thing  not  enforced  by  the  act  of  parliament  against 
America?  We  were  thereby  driven  out  of  their  pro- 
tection, and  branded  by  the  epithet  rebels.  The  term 
rebel  may  not  now  appear  in  all  its  train  of  horrid  con- 
sequences. We  know  that  when  a  person  is  called 
rebel  by  that  government,  his  goods  and  life  are  forfeit- 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  341 

cdi,  and  his  very  blood  pronounced  to  be  corrupted,  and 
the  severity  of  the  punishment  entailed  on  his  pos- 
terity. To  whom  may  we  apply  for  the  verity  of  this? 
The  jurisprudence  and  history  of  that  nation,  prove,  that 
when  they  speak  of  rebels,  nothing  but  blood  will  satisfy 
them.  Is  there  nothing  hideous  in  this  part  of  the  por- 
trait?— It  is  unparalleled  in  the  annals  of  mankind. 
Though  I  have  respect  for  individuals  of  that  nation,  my 
duty  constrains  me  to  speak  thus.  When  we  contemplate 
this  mode  of  warfare,  and  the  sentiments  of  the  writers 
on  natural  law  on  this  subject,  we  are  justified  in  say- 
ing, that  in  this  revolution  war,  we  had  a  right  to  con- 
sider British  debts  as  subject  to  confiscation — and  to 
seize  the  property  of  those  who  originated  that  war.  As 
to  the  injuries  done  to  agriculture,  they  appear  in  a 
diminutive  view,  when  compared  to  the  injuries  and 
indignities  offered  to  persons,  and  mansions  of  abode. 
Sir,  from  your  seat,  you  might  have  seen  instances  of 
the  most  grievous  hostility,  not  only  private  property 
wantonly  pillaged,  but  men,  women,  and  children, 
dragged  publicly  from  their  habitations,  and  indiscrimi- 
nately devoted  to  destruction.  The  rights  of  humanity 
were  sacrificed.  We  were  then  deprived  not  only  of 
the  benefits  of  municipal,  but  natural  law.  If  there 
shall  grow  out  of  these  considerations  a  palpable  dis- 
ability to  pay  those  debts,  I  ask,  if  the  claim  be  just? 
For  that  disability  was  produced  by  those  excesses — by 
those  very  men  who  come  on  us  now  for  payment.  Here 
give  me  leave  to  say,  that  they  sold  us  a  bad  title  in 
whatever  they  sold  us — in  real  as  well  as  in  personal 
property.  Describe  the  nature  of  a  debt:  it  is  an  en- 
gagement or  promise  to  pay — but  it  must  be  for  a 
valuable  consideration.  If  this  be  clear,  was  not  the  title 
to  whatever  property  they  sold  us,  bad  in  every  sense 


O-itt  SKETCHES  OP  THE 

of  the  word,  when  the  war  followed?  What  can  add 
value  to  property?  Force.  Notwithstanding  the  equity 
and  fairness  of  the  debt  when  incurred,  if  the  security 
of  the  property  received  was  afterwards  destroyed,  the 
title  has  proved  defective.  Suppose  millions  were  con- 
tracted for  and  received,  those  millions  give  you  no 
advantage,  without  force  to  protect  them.  This  neces- 
sary protection  is  withdrawn  by  the  very  men  who 
were  bound  to  afford  it,  and  who  now  demand  pay- 
ment. Neither  lands,  slaves,  nor  other  property,  are 
worth  a  shilling,  without  protecting  force.  This  title 
was  destroyed,  when  the  act  of  parliament  putting  us 
out  of  their  protection,  passed  against  America.  I  say, 
sir,  the  title  was  destroyed  by  the  very  offenders  who 
come  here  now  and  demand  payment.  Justice  and 
equity  cancel  the  obligation,  as  to  the  price  that  was  to 
be  given  for  it,  because  the  tenure  is  destroyed,  and 
the  effects  purchased  have  no  value.  Such  a  claim  is 
unsupported  by  the  plainest  notions  of  right  and  wrong. 
For  this  long  catalogue  of  offences  committed  against 
the  citizens  of  America,  every  individual  of  the  British 
nation  is  accountable.  How  are  you  to  be  compensated 
for  those  depredations  on  persons  and  property?  Are 
you  to  go  to  the  kingdom  of  England,  to  find  the  very  indi- 
vidual who  did  you  the  outrage,  and  demand  satisfaction 
of  him?  To  tell  you  of  such  a  remedy  as  this,  is  adding 
insult  to  injury.  Every  individual  is  chargeable  with  na- 
tional offences."  To  maintain  this  last  position,  he  cites 
an  authority  expressly  in  point,  from  Vattel,  and  pro- 
ceeds thus:  "  These  observations  of  Yattel  amount  to 
this:  that  a  king  or  conductor  of  a  nation  is  considered 
as  a  moral  person,  by  means  of  whom  the  nation  ac- 
quires or  loses  its  rights,  and  subjects  itself  to  penalties. 
The  individuals,  and  the  nation  which  they  compose, 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  343 

are  one.     I  will  therefore  take  it  for  granted,  that 
whatever  violences  and   excesses  were  committed  on 
this  continent,  are  chargeable  to  the  plaintiff  in  this 
very  action.     Recollect  our  distressed  situation.     We 
had  no  exchequer,  no  finances,  no  army,  no  navy,  no 
common  means  of  defence.     Our  necessity — dire  ne- 
cessity compelled  us  to  throw  aside  those  rules  which 
respect  private  property,  and  to  make  impresses  on  our 
own  citizens  to  support  the  war.     Right  and  necessity 
being  co-extensive,  we  were  compelled  to  exert  a  right 
the  most  eminent  over   the  whole  community.     The 
solus  populi  demanded  what  we  did.     If  we  had  a 
right  to  disregard  the  legal  fences  thrown  round  the 
property  of  our  citizens,  had  we  not  a  greater  right  to 
take  British  property?    Another  peculiarity  contributes 
to  aid  our  defence.  The  want  of  an  exchequer  obliged 
us  to  emit  paper  money,  and  compel  our  citizens  to 
receive  it  for  gold.     In  the  ears  of  some  men  this 
sounds  harshly.     But  they  are  young  men,  who  do  not 
know  and  feel  the  irresistible  necessity  that  urged  us. 
Would  your  armies  have  been  raised,  clothed,  main- 
tained, or  kept  together  without  paper  money?     With- 
out it,  the  war  would  have  stood  still,  resistance  to 
tyranny  would  have   stopped,   and  despotism  with  all 
its  horrid  train  of  appurtenances,  must  have  depressed 
your  country.     We  compelled  the  people  to  receive  it 
in  payment  of  all  debts — we  induced  and  invited  them 
(if  we  did  not  compel  them)  to  put  it  into  the  treasury, 
as  a  complete  discharge  from  their  debts.     Sir,  I  trust 
I  shall  not  live  to  see  the  day,  when  the  public  councils 
of  America  will  give  ground  to  say  that  this  was  a  state- 
trick,  contrived  to  delude  and  defraud  the   citizens. 
What  must  it  be  ostensibly,  when  by  the  compact  of 
your  nation,  they  had  publickly  bound  and  pledged 


344  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

themselves,  that  it  was  and  should  be  money,  if  after- 
wards, in  the  course  of  human  events,  when  tempta- 
tions present  themselves,  they  shall  declare  that  it  is 
not  money?  Sir,  the  honest  planter  is  unskilled  in  poli- 
tical tricks  and  deceptions.  His  interest  ought  never 
to  be  sacrificed.  The  law  is  his  guide.  The  law  com- 
pelled him  to  receive  it,  and  his  countrymen  would  have 
branded  him  with  the  name  of  enemy,  if  he  had  re- 
fused it.  The  laws  of  the  country  are  as  sacred  as  the 
imaginary  sanctity  of  British  debts.  Sir,  national  en- 
gagements ought  to  be  held  sacred;  the  public  violation 
of  this  solemn  engagement  will  destroy  all  confidence 
in  the  government.  If  you  depart  from  the  national 
compact  one  iota,  you  give  a  dangerous  precedent, 
which  may  imperceptibly  and  gradually  introduce  the 
most  destructive  encroachment  on  human  rights." 

He  then  proceeds  to  notice  more  directly  the  objec- 
tion that  we  were  not  a  people  competent  for  legislation, 
till  the  assent  of  the  British  king  was  given  to  our  inde- 
pendence: "  I  will  beg  leave  here  to  dissent  from  the 
position  of  the  gentleman  on  the  other  side,  which  de- 
nied that  we  were  a  people,  till  our  enemies  were  pleased 
to  say  we  were  so.  That  we  were  a  people,  and  had  a 
right  to  do  every  thing  which  a  great  and  a  royal — nay 
an  imperial  people  could  do,  is  clear  and  indisputable. 
Though  under  the  humble  appearance  of  republi- 
canism, our  government  and  national  existence,  when 
examined,  are  as  solid  as  a  rock — not  resting  on  the 
mere  fraud  and  oppression  of  rulers,  nor  the  credulity, 
nor  barbarous  ignorance  of  the  people;  but  founded  on 
the  consent  and  conviction  of  enlightened  human  na- 
ture. That  we  had  every  right,  that  completely  inde- 
pendent nations  can  have,  will  be  satisfactorily  proved 
to  your  honours,  by  again  referring  to  Vattel."    He 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  345 

then  cites  and  reads  a  passage  from  Vattel,  the  effect  of 
which  is,  that  during  a  civil  war,  the  parties  acknow- 
ledging no  common  judge  on  earth,  are  to  be  considered 
as  two  distinct  people;  and  to  govern  themselves  in  the 
conduct  of  the  war  by  the  general  laws  of  nations. 
After  which  he  proceeds  thus: 

a  Here  then,  sir,  is  proof  abundant,  that  before  the 
acknowledgment  of  American  independence  by  Great 
Britain,  we  had  a  right  to  be  considered  as  a  nation; 
because,  on  earth,  we  had  no  common  superior,  to  give 
a  decision  of  the  dispute  between  us  and  our  sovereign. 
After  declaring  ourselves  a  sovereign  people,  we  had 
every  right  a  nation  can  claim  as  an  independent  com- 
munity. But  the  gentlemen  on  the  other  side,  greatly 
rely  upon  this  principle,  that  a  contract  cannot  be  dis- 
solved without  the  consent  of  all  the  contracting  parties: 
the  inference  is,  that  the  consent  of  the  king  of  Great 
Britain  was  necessary  to  the  dissolution  of  the  govern- 
ment. Tyranny  has  too  often,  and  too  successfully 
rivetted  its  chains,  to  warrant  a  belief,  that  a  tyrant 
will  ever  voluntarily,  release  his  subjects  from  the 
governmental  compact.  Rather  might  it  be  expected, 
that  the  last  iota  of  human  misery  would  be  borne,  and 
the  oppression  would  descend  from  father  to  son,  to  the 
latest  period  of  earthly  existence.  The  despotism  of 
our  sovereign,  ought  to  be  considered  as  an  implied 
consent,  on  his  part,  to  dissolve  the  compact  between 
us;  and  he  and  his  subjects  must  be  considered  as  one 
— there  can  be  no  distinction.  For,  in  any  other  view, 
his  consent  could  not  have  been  obtained,  without  force. 
There  is  such  a  thing,  indeed,  as  tyranny  from  free 
choice.  Sweden  not  long  ago,  surrendered  its  liberties 
in  one  day,  as  Denmark  had  done  formerly;  so  that  this 
branch  of  the  human  family  is  cut  off  from  every  pos- 


346  SKETCHES    OP    THE 

sible  enjoyment  of  human  rights.  But  the  right  to  resist 
oppression,  is  not  denied.  The  gentlemen's  doctrine 
cannot  therefore  apply  to  national  communities.  If  any 
additional  force  was  wanting  to  confirm  what  I  advance, 
it  would  be  derived  from  the  treaty  of  peace,  which 
further  proves,  that  we  were  entitled  to  all  the  privileges 
of  independent  nations.  The  consent  of  all  the  people 
of  Europe  said  we  were  free.  Our  former  master  with- 
held his  consent  till  &few  unlucky  events  compelled  him. 
And  when  he  gave  his  fiat,  it  gave  us,  by  relation  back 
to  the  time  of  tlie  declaration  of  independence,  all  the 
rights  and  privileges  of  a  completely  sovereign  nation: 
our  independence  was  acknowledged  by  him,  previous 
to  the  completion  of  the  treaty  of  peace.  It  was  not  a 
condition  of  the  treaty,  but  was  acknowledged  by  his 
own  overture,  preparatory  to  it  View  the  consequences 
of  their  fatal  doctrine.  There  would  not  only  have  been 
long  arrears  of  debts  to  pay,  but  a  long  catalogue  of 
crimes  to  be  punished.  If  the  ultimate  acknowledg- 
ment of  our  independence  by  Great  Britain,  had  not 
relation  back  to  the  time  of  the  declaration  of  indepen- 
dence, all  the  intermediate  acts  of  legislation  would  be 
void — and  every  decision  and  act,  consequent  thereon, 
would  be  null.  But,  sir,  we  were  a  complete  nation  on 
every  principle,  according  to  the  authorities  I  have  al- 
ready read;  in  addition  to  which  I  will  refer  your  honours 
to  Vattel,  book  iv.  ch.  vii.  sect.  88,  to  show  we  were 
entitled  to  the  benefits  of  national  law,  and  to  use 
all  the  resources  of  the  community:  '  From  the  equality 
of  all  nations  really  sovereign  and  independent,  it  is  a 
principle  of  the  voluntary  law  of  nations,  that  no  nation 
can  controul  another  in  its  internal  municipal  legisla- 
tion/ If  we  consider  the  business  of  confiscation 
according  to  the  immemorial  usages  of  Great  Britain, 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  34? 

we  will  find,  that  the  law  and  practise  of  that  country 
support  my  position.  In  the  wars  which  respect  revo- 
lutions which  have  taken  place  in  that  island — life,  for- 
tune, goods,  debts,  and  everything  else  were  confiscated. 
The  crimen  Icesce  majestatis,  as  it  is  called,  involved 
every  thing.  Every  possible  punishment  has  been 
inflicted  on  suffering  humanity  that  it  could  endure,  by 
the  party  which  had  the  superiority  in  those  wars,  over 
the  defeated  party,  which  was  charged  with  rebellion. 
What  would  have  been  the  consequences,  sir,  if  we  had 
been  conquered?  Were  we  not  fighting  against  that 
majesty?  Would  the  justice  of  our  opposition  have 
been  considered?  The  most  horrid  forfeitures,  confisca- 
tions, and  attainders,  would  have  been  pronounced 
against  us.  Consider  their  history,  from  the  time  of 
William  the  first,  till  this  day.  Were  not  his  Normans 
gratified  with  the  confiscation  of  the  richest  estates  in 
England?  Read  the  excessive  cruelties,  attainders, 
and  confiscations,  of  that  reign.  England  depopu- 
lated— its  inhabitants  stripped  of  the  dearest  privi- 
leges of  humanity — degraded  with  the  most  igno- 
minious badges  of  bondage — and  totally  deprived  of 
the  power  of  resistance  to  usurpation  and  tyranny. 
This  inability  continued  to  the  time  of  Henry  the  eighth. 
In  his  reign,  the  business  of  confiscation  and  attainder 
made  considerable  havoc.  After  his  reign,  some  stop 
was  put  to  that  effusion  of  blood  which  preceded  and 
happened  under  it.  Recollect  the  sad  and  lamentable 
effects  of  the  York  and  Lancastrian  wars.  Remember 
the  rancorous  hatred  and  inveterate  detestations  of  con- 
tending factions — the  distinction  of  the  white  and  red 
roses.  To  come  a  little  lower— what  happened  in  that 
island  in  the  rebellions  of  1715  and  1745?  If  we  had 
been  conquered,  would  not  our  men  have  shared  the 


348  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

fate  of  the  people  of  Ireland?  A  great  part  of  that 
island  was  confiscated,  though  the  Irish  people  thought 
themselves  engaged  in  a  laudable  cause.  What  confis- 
cation and  punishments  were  inflicted  in  Scotland? 
The  plains  of  Culloden,  and  the  neighbouring  gibbets, 
would  show  you.  I  thank  heaven,  that  the  spirit  of 
liberty,  under  the  protection  of  the  Almighty,  saved  us 
from  experiencing  so  hard  a  destiny.  But  had  we  been 
subdued,  would  not  every  right  have  been  wrested  from 
us?  What  right  would  have  been  saved?  Would 
debts  have  been  saved?  Would  it  not  be  absurd  to 
save  debts,  while  they  should  burn,  hang,  and  destroy? 
Before  we  can  decide  with  precision,  we  are  to  consi- 
der the  dangers  we  should  have  been  exposed  to,  had 
we  been  subdued.  After  presenting  to  your  view  this 
true  picture  of  what  would  have  been  our  situation,  had 
we  been  subjugated— surely  a  correspondent  right  will 
be  found,  growing  out  of  the  law  of  nations,  in  our 
favour.  Had  our  subjugation  been  effected,  and  we 
pleaded  for  pardon — represented  that  we  defended  the 
most  valuable  rights  of  human  nature,  and  thought  they 
were  wrong — would  our  petition  have  availed?  I  feel 
myself  impelled  from  what  has  past,  to  ask  this  ques- 
tion. I  would  not  wish  to  have  lived  to  see  the  sad 
scenes  we  should  have  experienced.  Needy  avarice 
and  savage  cruelty  would  have  had  full  scope.  Hungry 
Germans,  blood-thirsty  Indians,  and  nations  of  another 
colour,  would  have  been  let  loose  upon  us.  The  sad 
effects  of  such  warfare  have  had  their  full  influence  on 
a  number  of  our  fellow-citizens.  Sir,  if  you  had  seen 
the  sad  scenes  which  I  have  known;  if  you  had  seen  the 
simple  but  tranquil  felicity  of  helpless  and  unoffending 
women  and  children,  in  little  log  huts  on  the  frontiers, 
disturbed  and  destroyed  by  the  sad  effects  of  British 


LIFE  OP  HENRY.  349 

warfare  and  Indian  butchery,  your  soul  would  have 
been  struck  with  horror!  Even  those  helpless  women 
and  children  were  the  objects  of  the  most  shocking 
barbarity.  Give  me  leave  again  to  recur  to  Vattel,  p. 
9.  '  Nations,  being  free,  independent,  and  equal,  and 
having  a  right  to  judge  according  to  the  dictates  of  con- 
science, of  what  is  to  be  done  in  order  to  fulfil  its  du- 
ties; the  effect  of  all  this  is,  the  producing;,  at  least 
externally  and  among  men,  a  perfect  equality  of  rights 
between  nations,  in  the  administration  of  their  affairs, 
and  the  pursuit  of  their  pretensions,  without  regard  to 
the  intrinsic  justice  of  their  conduct,  of  which  others 
have  no  right  to  form  a  definitive  judgment:  so  that 
what  is  permitted  in  one,  is  also  permitted  in  the  other; 
and  they  ought  to  be  considered  in  human  society  as 
having  an  equal  right/  If  it  be  allowed  to  the  British 
nation  to  put  to  death,  to  forfeit  and  confiscate  debts 
and  every  thing  else,  may  we  not  (having  an  equal 
right)  confiscate — not  life,  for  we  never  desire  it — but 
that  which  is  the  common  object  of  confiscation — pro- 
perty, goods,  and  debts,  which  strengthen  ourselves  and 
weaken  our  enemies?  I  trust  that  this  short  recapitu- 
lation of  events  shows,  that  if  there  ever  was  in  the 
history  of  man,  a  case  requiring  the  full  use  of  all  hu- 
man means,  it  was  our  case  in  the  late  contest;  and  we 
were  therefore  warranted  to  confiscate  the  British 
debts." 

He  now  takes  another  ground  to  establish  the  con- 
fiscation. I  shall  give  his  whole  argument  on  this  point 
in  his  own  words: 

"  I  beg  leave  to  add  that  these  debts  are  lost  on 
another  principle.  By  the  dissolution  of  the  British 
government,  America  went  into  a  state  of  nature — on 
the  dissolution  of  that  of  which  we  had  been  members, 


350  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

there  being  no  government  antecedent,  we  went  neces- 
sarily into  a  state  of  nature.     To  prove  this,  I  need 
only  refer  to  the  declaration  of  independence,   pro- 
nounced on  the  fourth  day  of  July  1776,  and  our  state 
constitution/'    (Here  Mr.  Henry  read  part  of  the  con- 
stitution.)    "  It  recites  many  instances  of  misnde  by  the 
king  of  England — it  asserts  the  right  and  expediency 
of  dissolving  the  British  government,  and  going  into  a 
state  of  nature;  or,  in  other  words,  to  establish  a  new 
government.     The  right  of  dissolving  it,  and  forming 
a  new  system,  had  preceded  the  fourth  day  of  July  1 776. 
A  recapitulation  of  the  events  of  the  tyrannical  acts  of 
government,  would  demonstrate  a  right  to  dissolve  it. 
But  I  may  go  farther,  and  even  say,  that  the  act  of 
parliament  which  declared  us  out  of  the  king's  protec- 
tion, dissolved  it.     For  what  is  government?    It  is  an 
express  or  implied  compact  between  the  rulers  and 
ruled,  stipulating  reciprocal  protection  and  obedience. 
That  protection  was  withdrawn,  solemnly  withdrawn 
from  us.    Of  consequence,  obedience  ceased  to  be  due. 
Our  municipal  rights  were  taken  away  by  one  blow. 
Municipal  obligations  and  government,  were  also  taken 
away  by  the  same  blow.     Well  then,  there  being  no 
antecedent  government,  we  returned  into  a  state  of  na- 
ture.    Unless  we  did  so,  our  new ,  compact  of  govern- 
ment could  only  be  an  usurpation.     In  a  state  of  nature 
there  is  no  legal  lien  on  the  person  or  property  of  any 
one.     If  you  are  not  clear  of  every  antecedent  engage- 
ment, what  is  the  legality  or  strength  of  the  present 
constitution  of  government?    If  any  antecedent   en- 
gagements are  to  bind,  how  far  are  they  to  reach?  You 
had  no  right  to  form  a  new  government,  if  the  old  sys- 
tem existed;  and  if  it  did  not  exist,  you  were  necessa- 
rily and  inevitably  in  a  state  of  nature.     In  my  humble 


LIFE    OF  HENRY.  351 

opinion,  by  giving  validity  to  such  claims,  you  destroy 
the  very  idea  of  the  right  to  form  a  new  government. 
Vattel  calls  government  the  totality  of  persons,  estates, 
and  effects,  formed  by  every  individual  of  the  new 
society,  and  that  totality  represented  by  the  governing 
power.   How  can  the  totality  exist  while  an  antecedent 
right  exists  elsewhere?  See  Grotius,  p.  4,  which  I  have 
already  read,  and  note  29:  Because  the  design  and  good 
of  civil  society  necessarily  require,  that  the  natural  and 
acquired  rights  of  each  member  should  admit  of  limi- 
tations several  ways,  and  to  a  certain  degree,  by  the 
authority  of  him  or  them,  in  whose  hands  the  sovereign 
authority  is  lodged.     When  we  formed  a  new  govern- 
ment, did  there  exist  any  authority  that  limited  our 
rights?   How  can  the  totality  exist,  if  any  other  person 
or  persons  have  an  existing  claim  upon  you?  It  appears 
to  me,  that  that  equality  which  is  involved  in  a  state  of 
nature,  cannot  exist  while  such  claim   exists.      The 
court  will  recollect  what  I  have  already  read  out  of 
Vattel,  in  the  15  and  18  sections.     The  equality  here 
ascribed  to  independent  nations,  is  equally  ascribed  to 
men  in  a  state  of  nature.     A  moral  society  of  persons 
cannot  exist,  without  this  absolute  equality.     The  ex- 
istence of  individuals  in  a  state  of  nature  depends  in 
like    manner    upon,    and  is   inseparable  from   such 
equality. 

"  Rights  as  before  mentioned,  Vattel,  p.  8  and  9, 
are  divided  into  internal  and  external:  of  external 
rights,  he  makes  the  distinction  of  perfect  and  imper- 
fect. I  beseech  your  honours  to  fix  this  distinction  in 
your  minds.  The  perfect  external  right  only,  is  accom- 
panied with  the  right  of  constraint.  The  imperfect 
right,  loses  that  quality,  and  leaves  it  to  the  party,  to 
comply  or  not  to  comply  with  it     When  the  former 


352  SKETCHES  OF  THE 


government  was  dissolved,  the  American  people  be- 
came indebted  to  nobody.  You  either  owe  every  thing 
or  nothing — and  every  contract  and  engagement  must 
be  done  away,  if  any.  In  a  state  of  nature  you  are  free 
and  equal.  But  how  are  you  free,  if  another  has  a 
lien  on  your  body?  Where  is  your  freedom,  or  your 
equality  with  that  person,  who  has  the  right  of  con- 
straining you?  This  right  of  constraint,  implies  a  com- 
plete authority  over  you,  but  not  however  to  enslave 
you.  This  constraint  is  always  adequate  to  the  right 
or  obligation.  Where  can  you  find  the  possibility  of 
this  equality  which  nature  gives  her  sons,  if  we  admit 
an  existing  right  of  constraint?  If  it  be  a  fact,  that 
on  the  dissolution  of  the  government  we  did  enter  into 
a  state  of  nature  (and  that  we  did,  I  humbly  judge  can- 
not be  denied,  as  at  that  time  no  government  existed 
at  all)  it  destroys  all  claim  to  one  farthing.  This  will 
be  found  to  be  true  as  well  upon  the  ground  of  equity 
and  good  conscience,  as  in  law,  when  it  is  considered, 
that  when  we  went  into  a  state  of  nature,  the  means 
of  paying  debts  were  taken  away  from  us  by  them; 
because  so  far  as  they  had  power  over  us,  they  pre- 
vented us  from  getting  money  to  pay  debts.  They  in- 
terdicted us  from  the  pursuit  of  profitable  commerce; 
from  getting  gold  and  silver,  the  only  things  they  would 
take — they  unjustly  drove  us  to  this  extremity.  By 
the  concession  of  the  worthy  gentleman,  their  attack 
upon  us  was  unjust. 

"  But  then,  debts  are  not  subject  to  confiscation,  say 
gentlemen,  because  there  were  no  inquests,  no  office 
found  for  the  commonwealth.  Has  a  debt  an  ear-mark? 
Is  it  tangible  or  visible?  Has  it  any  discriminating 
quality?  Unless  tangible  or  visible,  how  is  it  to  be  ascer- 
tained or  distinguished?    What  does  an  inquest  mean? 


LIFE   OP  HENRY.  353 

A  solemn  inquiry  by  a  jury,  by  ocular  examination, 
with  other  proofs.  If  an  inquest  of  office  were  to  be 
had  of  land,  a  jury  could  tell  the  lines  and  boundaries 
of  it,  because  they  may  be  distinguished  from  others, 
and  its  identity  may  thereby  be  ascertained.  If  a  horse  be 
the  object  of  inquiry,  he  can  be  easily  distinguished  from 
any  other  horse.  In  like  manner  every  other  article  of 
visible  property  may  be  subject  to  inquests;  but  such  a 
thing  as  an  inquest  of  a  debt  never  existed,  as  far  as 
my  legal  knowledge  extends.  What  is  to  be  the  conse- 
quences, if  this  proceeding  be  requisite?  You  must 
set  up  a  court  of  inquisition,  summon  the  whole  nation, 
and  ask  every  man,  how  much  do  you  oive?  This 
would  be  productive  of  endless  confusion,  perplexity, 
and  expense,  without  the  desired  effect.  The  laws  of 
war  and  of  nations,  require  no  more  than  that  the  sove- 
reign power  should  openly  signify  its  will,  that  the  debts 
be  forfeited.  There  is  no  particular  forensic  form  ne- 
cessary. The  question  here,  is  not  whether  this  con- 
fiscation be  traversed  in  all  the  forms  of  municipal 
regulations.  There  is  a  question  between  Great  Britain 
and  America  similar  to  that  between  Alexander  and 
the  Thebans.  Has  the  sovereign  signified  his  pleasure, 
that  debts  be  remitted?  A  sign  is  completely  sufficient, 
if  it  be  understood  by  the  people.  There  is  a  necessity 
of  thus  speaking  the  legislative  will,  that  the  other  party 
may  know  it,  and  retaliate;  for  what  is  allowed  to  one, 
is  to  both  parties.  This  was  different  from  the  nature 
of  a  solemn  war.  War  is  lawful  or  unlawful,  according 
to  the  manner  of  conducting  it.  In  the  prosecution  of 
a  lawful  solemn  war,  it  is  necessary  that  you  do  not  de- 
part from  certain  rules  of  moderation,  honour,  and 
humanity,  but  act  according  to  the  usual  practice  of  bel- 
ligerent powers.     Did  the  mother  country  conduct  the 

Yy 


354  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

war  against  us  in  this  manner?  We  did  openly  say, 
we  mean  to  confiscate  your  debts,  and  modify  them, 
because  they  have  lost  their  perfect  external  quality — 
they  are  imperfect — we  claim  that  right,  as  a  sovereign 
people,  over  that  species  of  your  property.  Sir,  it  was 
not  done  in  a  corner.  It  was  understood  by  our  ene- 
mies. They  had  a  right  to  retaliate  on  any  species  o£^ 
our  property  they  could  find.  The  right  of  retaliation, 
or  just  retortion,  for  equivalent  damage  on  any  part  of 
an  enemy's  property,  is  permitted  to  every  nation. 
What  right  has  the  British  nation  (for  if  the  nation  has 
not  the  right,  none  of  its  people  have)  to  demand  a 
breach  of  faith  in  the  American  government  to  its  citi- 
zens? I  have  already  mentioned  the  engagement  of 
the  government  with  its  citizens  respecting  the  paper 
money — If  you  take  it}  it  shall  be  money.  Shall  it  be 
judged  now  not  to  be  money?  Shall  this  compact  be 
broken  for  the  sake  of  the  British  nation?  No,  sir, 
the  language  of  national  law  is  otherwise.  Sir,  the 
laws  of  confiscation  and  paper  money,  made  together 
one  system,  connected  and  sanctioned  by  the  legisla- 
ture, on  which  depended  once  the  fate  of  our  coun- 
try, and  on  which  depend  now,  the  happiness,  the  ease, 
and  comfort,  of  thousands  of  your  fellow-citizens.  Will 
it  not  be  a  breach  of  the  compact  with  your  people,  to 
say  that  the  money  is  not  to  keep  up  to  its  original 
standard  in  the  quality  given  it  by  law?  What  were  the 
effects  of  this  system?  What  would  have  been  the 
effects,  had  your  citizens  been  apprized  that  British 
debts  must  be  paid?  Would  they  have  taken  the  mo- 
ney? Would  they  have  deposited  the  money  in  the 
loan  office,  if  they  had  been  warned  by  law,  that  they 
must  deposit  it,  subject  to  the  future  regulations  of 
peace;  that  it  should  not  release  them  from  the  ere- 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  355 

ctitors?  However  right  it  may  appear  now,  to  decry 
the  paper  money,  it  would  have  been  fatal  then;  for 
America  might  have  perished,  without  the  aid  and  effect 
of  that  medium.  Your  citizens  trusting  to  this  com- 
pact, submitted  to  a  number  of  things  almost  intolerable 
— impressments  and  violences  on  their  property — it 
encouraged  them  to  exert  themselves  in  defence  of  their 
property  against  the  enemy  during  the  war.  If  the 
debt  in  the  declaration  mentioned  be  recovered,  the 
compact  is  subverted,  as  respecting  the  paper  money. 
And  this  subversion  is  to  take  effect  for  the  interest  of 
those  men,  whom,  by  all  laws,  human  and  divine,  we 
were  obliged  to  consider  as  enemies;  men,  who  were 
obliged  to  comply  with  the  regulations  and  requisitions 
of  their  king;  and  our  people  will  have  been  labouring, 
not  for  themselves,  but  for  the  benefit  of  the  British 
subject  When  a  vessel  is  in  danger  in  a  storm,  those 
who  abide  on  board  of  her,  and  encounter  the  dangers 
of  the  sea  to  save  her,  are  allowed  some  little  compen- 
sation for  salvage,  for  their  fidelity  and  gallantry  in 
endeavouring  to  prevent  her  loss ;  while  those  who  aban- 
don her  are  entitled  to  nothing.  But,  in  opposition  to 
this  wise  and  politic  principle,  we,  who  have  withstood 
the  storms  and  dangers,  receive  no  compensation;  but 
those  who  left  the  political  ship,  and  joined  those  on  the 
other  side  of  the  water  who  wished  to  sink  her,  and 
who  caused  us  to  fight  eight  long  years  for  her  preserva- 
tion, shall  come  in  at  last,  and  get  their  full  share  of 
this  vessel,  and  yet  will  have  been  exonerated  from 
every  charge.  For  whom  then,  were  the  people  of 
America  engaged  in  war?  Not  for  themselves,  I  am 
sure — the  property  that  they  saved  will  not  be  for  them- 
selves, but  for  those  whom  they  had  a  right  to  call  ene- 
mies.    I  am  not  willing  to  ascribe  to  the  meanest  Ame- 


356  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

rican  the  love  of  money,  or  desire  of  eluding  the  pay- 
ment of  his  debts,  as  the  motive  of  engaging  in  the 
war.  No,  sir.  He  had  nobler  and  better  views.  But 
he  thinks  himself  well  entitled  to  those  debts,  from  the 
laws  and  usages  of  nations,  as  a  compensation  for  the 
injuries  he  has  sustained.  There  is  a  sad  drawback  on 
this  property  saved.  A  national  debt  for  seventeen 
years,  considerable  taxes,  which  were  profusely  laid 
during  the  war  on  lands  and  slaves;  and,  since  the 
peace,  we  have  been  loaded  with  a  heavy  taxation.  I 
know  that  I  advocate  this  cause  on  a  very  advantageous 
ground,  when  I  speak  of  the  right  of  salvage.  The 
cargo  on  board  the  wrecked  vessel  belongs  to  the  Bri- 
tish; it  will  have  been  saved  for  them!  but  the  salvage 
is  due  to  us  only.  If  you  take  it  on  the  ground  of 
interest — you  may  hold  as  a  pledge — you  may  retain 
for  salvage.  If  you  take  it  on  the  scale  of  the  common 
law,  or  of  national  law — you  may  oppose  damages  to 
debts — retain  the  debts,  to  retribute  and  compensate 
for  the  injuries  they  have  done  you.  I  have  now  got 
over,  and  I  trust  established,  the  first  point;  that  is,  that 
debts  in  common  wars  are  subject  to  forfeiture,  and 
much  more  so  in  a  revolution  war  like  the  American 
war."* 

Having  established  his  first  position,  he  presents  his 
next  point  thus:  "  My  next  point  is,  that  the  British 
debts  being  so  forfeited  (as  I  conceive)  can  only  be 
revived  by  the  treaty;  and  unless  they  be  so  revived,  they 


*  These  copious  extracts  from  the  report  on  Mr.  Henry's  first  point,  are 
deemed  necessary,  to  give  the  reader  an  idea  of  his  mode  of  argumentation, 
so  far  as  it  can  be  furnished  by  this  report.  It  would  be  trespassing  on  the  in- 
dulgence of  the  proprietor  of  the  manuscript,  (which  has  never  been  pub- 
lished,) and  trespassing,  too,  perhaps  on  the  patience  of  that  portion  of  my 
readers,  who  can  find  no  enjoyment  in  legal  discussion,  to  pursue  any  fan? 
ther  this  extended  mode  of  analysis. 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  357 

are  gone  for  ever.  I  will  then  consider  how  this  matter 
stands  under  the  treaty."  He  proceeds  then  to  show 
by  authority,  the  rules  by  which  treaties  are  to  be  con- 
strued; and  demonstrates,  that  a  treaty  can  confer  no 
benefit  unless  it  be  mutually  observed  with  good  faith: 
that  perfidy  on  either  side,  is  a  forfeiture  of  all  its  ad- 
vantages; that  the  stipulations  of  a  treaty  are  in  the 
nature  of  conditions  precedent;  that  a  breach  on  either 
side  dissolves  the  covenant  altogether,  and  places  the 
parties  on  the  general  ground  which  they  occupied 
before  the  treaty;  that  Great  Britain  had  violated  the 
treaty,  in  the  moment  of  its  ratification,  by  carrying 
off  our  slaves,  and  detaining  with  an  armed  force  those 
posts  of  which  she  had  stipulated  the  immediate  sur- 
render; that  the  pretence  of  her  having  acted  thus  as  a 
retaliatory  measure  for  the  non-payment  of  the  debts, 
was  an  insult  to  common  understanding,  because  she 
began  her  infractions  before  any  experiment  had  been 
made  of  a  recovery  of  the  debts;  that  the  notion  of  a 
reprisal,  preceding  any  injury — and  a  retaliation  in  ad- 
vance, of  any  wrong  on  the  opposite  side,  was  so  far 
from  mitigating  her  offence,  that  it  was  a  daring  insult 
on  the  honour  and  good  faith  of  this  nation!  Having  by 
a  series  of  authorities  directly  in  point,  established  the 
right  of  the  American  nation  to  regard  the  treaty  as 
abolished  by  any  perfidious  infraction  of  it,  on  the  part 
of  Great  Britain,  he  shows  next,  that  those  infractions 
were  established  by  the  pleadings  in  the  cause;  because 
the  defendant  by  his  several  pleas  had  specified  those 
infractions,  and  the  plaintiff,  by  demurring  to  the  pleas, 
had  admitted  the  truth  of  their  averments. 

Great  Britain  then,  as  a  nation,  having  by  her  own 
perfidy  forfeited  all  right  to  insist  upon  the  treaty,  and 


358  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

that  treaty  as  betiveen  the  nations,  being  annulled,  the 
next  question  was,  whether  any  individual  of  the  British 
nation  could  claim  any  advantage  under  the  treaty? 
This  he  shows  could  not  be  done,  because  in  making 
the  treaty,  the  sovereigns  of  the  two  nations  acted  for  all 
the  individuals  of  their  respective  nations;  the  indivi- 
duals were  bound  by  all  the  acts  of  those  sovereigns, 
whether  in  making  or  abolishing  a  treaty.  "  Here," 
said  he,  "are  two  moral  persons,  Great  Britain  and 
America,  making  a  contract.  The  plaintiff  claims  and 
the  defendant  defends  under  and  through  them;  and  if 
either  nation  or  moral  person,  has  no  rights  to  benefits 
from  such  contract,  individuals  claiming  under  them 
can  have  none.  The  plaintiff  then  claims  under  his 
nation,  but  if  that  nation  have  committed  perfidy  re- 
specting the  observance  of  the  compact,  no  right  can 
be  carried  therefrom  to  the  plaintiff.  It  puts  him 
back  in  the  same  situation  he  was  in  before  the  treaty." 
He  shows  the  absurdity  of  considering  the  treaty  as 
annulled,  in  relation  to  all  the  individuals,  in  their  col- 
lective character  of  a  nation,  and  yet  as  in  full  force  for 
the  benefit  of  each  individual  separately;  for  if  this 
plaintiff  had  a  right  to  all  the  beneficial  effects  of  the 
treaty,  every  man  in  England  had  the  same  right;  and 
he  cites  and  reads  from  Vattel,  a  conclusive  authority 
to  show  that  the  conventional  law  of  nations  could  take 
its  effect  only  from  universal  right,  extending  equally 
to  all  the  citizens  or  individuals  of  a  nation.  But  to 
say,  that  America  had  a  right  to  consider  the  treaty  as 
void  against  all  the  individuals  of  the  British  nation, 
collectively,  while  each  and  every  individual  of  that 
nation  separately,  could  enforce  it  upon  her,  was  to 
offer  to  the  understanding,  a  paradoxical  absurdity. 


LIFE  OF  HENHY.  359 

as  insulting  to  common  sense,  as  the  conduct  of 
Great  Britain  had  been  to  the  honour  of  the  American 
nation. 

He  contended  further  on  this  point,  that  if  the  treaty 
had  been  observed  by  Great  Britain,  and  were  of  conse- 
quence, still  obligatory,  it  did  not  and  could  not  operate 
where  monies  had  been  actually  paid  into  the  treasury 
under  the  laws  of  the  state:  for  the  provision  of  the  treaty 
is,  "  that  creditors  on  either  side  should  meet  with  no 
lawful  impediment  to  the  recovery  of  all  bona  fide  debts 
heretofore  contracted."  The  defendant,  said  he,  hav- 
ing paid  the  money  into  the  treasury  according  to  the 
act  of  assembly,  and  the  truth  of  the  payment  being 
admitted  in  the  record,  this  article  of  the  treaty  could 
not  support  the  plaintiff's  claim.  "  To  derive  a  benefit 
from  the  treaty,  the  plaintiff  must  demand  a  bona  fide 
debt:  that  is,  a  debt  bona  fide  due.  The  word  debt 
implies  that  the  thing  is  due;  for  if  it  be  not  due,  how 
can  it  be  a  debt?  To  give  to  these  words,  all  debts 
heretofore  contracted,  a  strictly  literal  sense,  would  be 
to  authorize  a  renewed  demand  for  debts  which  had 
been  actually  paid  off  to  the  creditor;  for  these  were 
certainly  within  the  words  of  the  treaty,  being  debts 
heretofore  contracted — to  avoid  this  absurd  and  dis- 
honest consequence,  you  must  look  at  the  intention  of 
the  thing;  and  the  intention  certainly  was  to  embrace 
those  cases  where  there  had  not  been  a  legal  payment. 
I  ask,"  said  he,  "  why  a  payment  made  in  gold  and 
silver  is  a  legal  payment?  Because  the  coin  of  those 
metals  is  made  current  by  the  laws  of  this  country? 
If  paper  be  made  current  by  the  same  authority,  why 
should  not  a  payment  in  it,  be  equally  valid?  The 
British  subject  cannot  demand  payment,  because  I  con- 
front his  Remand  with  a  receipt     Why  will  a  receipt 


o 


60  SKETCHES  OF  THE 


discharge  in  any  instance? — because  it  is  founded  on 
the  laws  of  the  country.     A  receipt  given  in  conse- 
quence of  a  payment  in  coin,  is  a  legal  discharge,  only 
because  the  laics  of  the  country  make  it  so.     I  ask  then 
why  a  receipt  given  in  consequence  of  a  payment  into 
the  treasury,  be  not  of  equal  validity,  since  it  has  pre- 
cisely the  same  foundation?  It  is  expressly  constituted 
a  discharge  by  a  legislature  having  competent  authority. 
This  debt  therefore,  having  been  legally  paid  by  the 
contractor,  was  not  due  from  him  at  the  time  of  making 
the  treaty,  and  therefore  is  not  within  the  intention  of 
that  instrument.     But,  say  the  gentlemen  on  the  other 
side,  the  one  payment  has  the  consent  of  the  creditor, 
and  the  other  has  not:  he  who  paid   coin  has  the 
creditor's  consent  to  the  discharge,  but  he  who  paid 
money  into  the  treasury,  wants  it.     Have  we  not  satis- 
fied this  honourable  court,  that  the  governing  power 
had  a  right  to  put  itself  in  the  place  of  the  British  sub- 
jects? Having  had  an  unquestionable  right  to  confiscate, 
sequester,  or  modify  those  debts  as  they  pleased,  they 
had  an  equally  indubitable  right  to  substitute  themselves 
in  the  stead  of  the  plaintiff,  otherwise  those  authorities 
have  been  quoted  in  vain."     He  then  cites  authorities 
to  prove,  that  the  law  of  the  place  governs  the  contract; 
and  concludes,  that  the  payment  into  the  treasury  hav- 
ing in  this  instance,  been  made  in  consequence  of  a 
law  of  this  commonwealth,  which  was  strictly  conso- 
nant with  the  laws  of  nations,  and  which  had  declared 
that  such  payment  should  operate  as  a  complete  and 
final  discharge,  this  was  not  a  subsisting  debt,  within  the 
contemplation  of  the  treaty,  and  remained  therefore, 
wholly  unaffected  by  it. 

The  next  question  was,  whether  this  court  could  take 
notice  of  this  infraction  of  the  treaty,  on  the  part  of 


LIFE  OP  HENRY.  361 

Great  Britain,  and  found  their  judgment  upon  it.  On 
this  question,  he  observes  that  the  court  were  not 
called  upon  to  step  out  of  their  appropriate  sphere,  in 
order  to  invade  the  province  of  the  jury  by  trying  facts; 
the  facts  were  all  agreed  by  the  pleadings;  the  court 
were  merely  called  upon  to  say  what  was  the  law 
arising  on  those  facts.  The  existence  or  non-exist- 
ence of  the  treaty,  was  a  legal  inference  from  the  facts 
agreed;  which  the  court  alone  were  competent  to  de- 
cide. The  plaintiff  himself  had  forced  this  question 
on  the  court,  by  relying  in  his  replication  on  the  treaty, 
as  restoring  his  right  to  recover  this  debt.  He  sets  up 
his  right  under  this  instrument  expressly,  and  then 
questions  the  jurisdiction  of  the  court  to  decide  upon 
the  instrument!  The  treaty,  quoad  hoc,  is  the  covenant 
of  the  parties  in  this  suit:  the  question  presented  by 
the  pleadings  is,  whether  the  plaintiff,  who  by  that 
covenant,  has  taken  upon  himself  the  performance  of 
a  precedent  condition,  can  claim  any  benefit  under  it, 
until  he  shall  show  that  this  precedent  condition  has 
been  performed.  On  this  question  said  he,  the  gentle- 
man's argument  is,  that  the  court  have  no  power  to  de- 
cide on  the  construction  of  the  covenant,  which  he  him- 
self has  brought  before  them ;  that  they  have  nothing 
to  do  with  the  dependence  or  independence  of  the 
stipulations,  or  the  reciprocal  rights  of  the  parties,  to 
claim  under  the  covenant,  without  showing  a  previous 
performance  on  their  respective  parts!  He,  on  the  con- 
trary, insisted  that  under  the  constitution  of  the  United 
States,  the  question  belonged,  'peculiarly  and  exclu- 
sively, to  the  judicial  department:  that  by  the  consti- 
tution, it  was  expressly  provided  that  the  judicial  power 
should  extend  to  all  cases  arising  under  treaties:   that 

the  law  of  treaties  embraced  the  whole  extent  of  natural 

z  z 


362  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

and  national  law;  that  the  constitution  therefore,  by 
referring  all  cases  arising  under  treaties,  to  the  judi- 
ciary, had  of  necessity  invested  them  with  the  power 
of  appealing  to  that  code  of  laws,  by  which  alone  the 
construction,  the  operation,  the  efficacy,  the  legal  ex- 
istence or  non-existence  of  treaties,  must  be  tested:  and 
by  this  code,  they  were  told  in  the  most  emphatic  terms, 
that  he  who  violates  one  article  of  a  treaty,  releases 
the  other  party  from  the  performance  of  any  part  of  it; 
that  the  reference  of  all  cases  arising  under  treaties,  to 
the  judicial  department,  carried  with  it  every  power 
siiear  or  remote,  direct  or  collateral,  which  was  essential 
to  a  fair  and  just  decision  of  those  cases; — that  in  every 
such  case,  the  very  first  question  was,  is  there  a  treaty 
or  not? — not  whether  there  has  been  a  treaty —but 
whether  there  is  an  existing,  obligatory,  operative 
treaty.  To  decide  this  question,  the  court  must  bring 
the  facts  to  the  standard  of  the  laws  of  nations;  and  by 
this  standard  it  had  been  shown,  that  in  the  case  at 
bar,  there  existed  no  treaty,  from  which  a  British  sub- 
ject could  claim  any  benefit.  That  if  the  judicial  de- 
partment had  not  the  power  of  deciding  this  question, 
there  was  no  department  in  the  American  government 
which  did  possess  it:  the  state  governments  have  no- 
thing to  do  with  it — congress  cannot  touch  the  sub- 
ject— they  may  indeed,  declare  war  for  a  violation;  but 
a  nation  was  not  to  be  forced  to  this  extremity,  on  every 
occasion;  there  were  other  modes  of  redress,  short  of 
a  declaration  of  war,  to  which  nations  had  a  right  to 
resort;  and  one  of  them,  as  he  had  shown,  was  the  power 
of  withholding  from  the  perfidious  violator  of  a  treaty, 
those  benefits  which  he  claimed  under  it.  Now,  con- 
gress could  not  by  a  law  declare  a  treaty  void — it  is  not 
among  those  grants  of  power  which  the  constitution 


LIFE  OP  HENRY.  3G3 

makes  to  them;  they  cannot  therefore,  meddle  with 
the  subject  in  any  other  way  than  by  a  declaration  of 
war;  neither  can  the  president  and  senate  touch  it.  They 
can  make  treaties;  but  the  constitution  gives  them  no 
power  to  expound  a  treaty;  much  less  to  declare  it  void: 
they  can  only  unite  with  the  house  of  representatives, 
in  punishing  an  infraction  by  a  declaration  of  war.  To 
the  judiciary  alone,  then,  belongs  this  pacific  power 
of  withholding  legal  benefits,  claimed  under  a  treaty, 
because  of  the  mala  fides  of  the  party  claiming  them. 
Now,  what  will  be  the  situation  of  this  country,  com- 
pared with  that  of  Great  Britain,  if  you  deny  this  power 
to  the  judiciary?  If  you  have  not  observed  the  treaty 
with  good  faith,  and  go  to  England,  claiming  any  be- 
nefit under  the  treaty,  there  is  a  power  there,  called 
royal  prerogative,  which  will  tell  you — no — go  home 
and  act  honestly,  and  you  shall  have  your  rights  under 
the  treaty.  Your  breach  of  faith  will  not  drive  them  to 
a  declaration  of  war — there  is  a  power  there  which 
obtains  redress  by  withholding  your  rights,  until  you 
act  with  good  faith:  but  where  is  the  recriprocal  and 
corresponding  power  in  our  government,  if  it  be  not 
in  the  judiciary?  It  is  no  where; — we  have  no  redress 
short  of  a  declaration  of  war.  Is  this  one  of  the  pre- 
cious fruits  of  the  adoption  of  the  federal  constitution, 
to  bind  us  hand  and  foot  with  the  fetters  of  technicality, 
and  leave  us  no  way  of  bursting  them  asunder,  but  by  a 
declaration  of  war,  and  the  effusion  of  human  blood! 
It  was  never  intended.  The  wisdom  and  virtue  which 
framed  the  constitution,  could  never  have  intended  to 
place  the  country  in  this  humiliating  and  awful  predica- 
ment. Give  to  this  power  of  deciding  on  treaties, 
which  is  delegated  to  the  federal  judiciary,  a  liberal 
construction — give    them   all   the   incidental   powers, 


364  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

necessary  to  carry  it  into  effect — open  to  them  the  whole 
region  of  natural  and  national  law,  which  furnish  the 
only  rule  of  expounding  those  national  compacts,  called 
treaties,  and  your  government  is  unmutilated,  its  mea- 
sure of  power  is  full  up  to  the  exigencies  of  the 
nation,  and  you  treat  on  equal  terms:  but  upon  the 
opposite  construction,  much  better  would  it  be  that 
America  should  have  no  treaties  at  all,  than  that  hav- 
ing them,  she  should  want  those  means  of  enforcement 
and  redress,  which  all  other  nations  possess. 

Having  thus  established  that  debts  are  subject  to  con- 
fiscation in  common  wars,  and  much  more  so  in  the 
war  of  the  revolution — that  Virginia  was  an  independ- 
ent nation,  and,  as  such,  competent  to  the  exercise  of 
this  right  of  eminent  domain — of  taking  to  herself  the 
debts  of  her  enemies — that  she  had  in  fact  exercised 
this  right,  and  that  this  debt,  had  under  one  of  her  laws 
of  that  character,  been  legally  discharged — that  the 
treaty  had  no  effect  in  reviving  the  claim,  because  the 
treaty  had  been  annulled  by  the  infractions  of  it  on  the 
part  of  Great  Britain — and  because  if  it  had  not,  this  was 
not  a  subsisting  debt,  within  the  purview  of  the  treaty 
— and,  finally,  that  the  court's  jurisdiction  extended 
to  every  question  touching  the  continuance  or  annul- 
ment of  treaties.  He  said,  he  had  now  finished  his 
own  view  of  the  subject,  and  should  have  taken  his 
seat,  but  for  the  necessity  of  giving  a  particular  an- 
swer to  the  various  objections  to  these  principles, 
which  had  been  so  ably  urged  by  the  counsel  for  the 
plaintiff.  In  this  part  of  his  subject  he  shows  the  most 
masterly  acuteness,  address,  and  vigour.  A  gentleman 
who  was  present,*  has  described  some  of  the  circum- 

*  The  late  Mr.  Hardin  Burnley. 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  365 

stances  of  his  manner,  with  a  very  interesting  minute- 
ness.     "  Mr.  Henry/7  he  said,    "  had  taken  ample 
notes  of  the  arguments  of  his  adversaries:  the  people 
would  give  him  his  own  time  to  examine  his  notes,  and 
select  the  argument  or  remark  that  he  meant  to  make 
the  subject  of  his  comments,  observing  in  these  pauses 
the  most  profound  silence.     If  the  answer  which  he 
was  about  to  give  was  a  short  one,  he  would  give  it, 
without  removing  his  spectacles  from  his  nose — but  if 
he  was  ever  seen  to  give  his  spectacles  a  cant  to  the  top 
of  his  wig,  it  ivas  a  declaration  of  war,  and  his  adver- 
saries must  stand  clear." 

I  propose  to  give  a  few  specimens  only  of  his  mode 
of  answering  the  arguments  of  the  opposing  counsel. 
It  had  been  urged  by  them,  that  the  laws  of  nations  had 
declared  only  the  estate  of  an  alien  enemy  liable  to  con- 
fiscation— but  that  debts  were  mere  rights— cJwses  in 
action — and  therefore  not  of  a  confiscable  character. 
His  answer  to  this,  is  a  happy  mixture  of  ridicule  and 
argument.  It  is  short,  and  I  shall  give  it  in  his  own 
words. 

"  But  a  chose  in  action  is  not  liable  to  forfeiture. 
Why?  Because  it  is  too  terrible  to  be  done.  There 
is  such  a  thing  as  straining  at  a  gnat,  and  swallowing  a 
camel.  Things  much  more  terrible  have  been  done — 
things,  from  which  our  nature,  where  it  has  any  pre- 
tensions to  be  pure  and  correct,  must  recoil  with  horror. 
Show  me  those  laws  which  forfeit  your  life,  attaint  your 
blood,  and  beggar  your  wife  and  children.  Those  san- 
guinary and  inhuman  laws,  to  which  every  thing  valua- 
ble must  yield,  are  to  be  found  in  the  code  of  that 
people,  under  whom  the  plaintiff  now  claims.  Is  it  so 
terrible  to  confiscate  debts,  when  they  forfeit  life,  and 
corrupt  the  veiy  source  of  your  blood  ?    Though  even 


366  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

other  thing  dear  to  humanity  is  forfeitable,  yet  debts,  it 
seems,  must  be  spared!    Debts  are  too  sacred  to  be 
touched!     It  is  a  mercantile  idea,  that  worships  Mam- 
mon, instead  of  God.     A  chose  in  action  shall  pass — it 
is  without  your  reach.    What  authority  can  they  adduce 
in  support  of  such  conclusive  pre-eminence  for  debts? 
No  political  or  human  institution  has  placed  them  above 
other  things.     If  debt  be  the  most  sacred  of  all  earthly 
obligations,  I  am  uninformed  from  whence  it  has  de- 
rived that  eminence.     The  principle  is  to  be  found  in 
the  daybooks,  journals,  and  ledgers  of  merchants;  not 
in  the  writings  or  reasonings  of  the  wise  and  well  in- 
formed— the  enlightened  instructors  of  mankind.    Can 
any  gentleman  show  me  any  instance,  where  the  life  or 
property  of  a  gentleman  or  plebeian  in  England  is  for- 
feited, and  yet  his  debts  spared?    The  state  can  claim 
debts  due  to  one  guilty  of  high  treason.     Are  they  not 
subject  to  confiscation?    I  concur  in  that  sound  princi- 
ple, that  good  faith  is  essential  to  the  happiness  of  man- 
kind; that  its  want,  stops  all  human  intercourse,  and 
renders  us  miserable.  This  principle  is  permanent,  and 
universal.     Look  to  what  point  of  the  compass  you 
will,  you  will  find  it  pervading  all  nations.     Who  does 
not  set  down  its  sacred  influence  as  the  only  thing  that 
comforts  human  life?   Does  the  plaintiff  claim  through 
good  faith?    How  does  lie  derive  his  claim?    Through 
perfidy:  through  a  j)olluled  channel.     Every  thing  of 
that  kind  would  have  come  better  from  our  side  of  the 
question,  than  from  theirs." 

Mr.  Ronald  had  insisted,  strenuously,  that  there  could 
be  no  forfeiture  or  escheat  without  the  inquest  of  a  jury; 
and  that  no  act  of  the  legislature  had,  in  fact,  directly 
forfeited  these  debts.  In  answer  to  this,  Mr.  Henry 
says,  ei  But  the  gentleman  has  observed,  that  neither  the 


LIFE    OF    HENRY.  367 

declaration  of  the  legislature  by  the  act  of  1779,  that 
the  British  subjects  had  become  aliens,  and  their  pro- 
perty vested  in  the  commonwealth,  nor  any  other  act 
passed  on  the  subject,  could  divest  the  debts  out  of  the 
British  creditors.  It  cannot  be  done  without  the  so- 
lemnity of  an  inquiry  by  a  jury.  The  debt  of  A  or  B 
cannot  be  given  to  C,  without  this  solemnity.  Is  the 
little  legality  of  forms,  which  are  necessary  when  you 
speak  of  estates  and  titles,  requisite  on  such  mighty 
occasions  as  these?  When  the  fate  of  a  nation  is  con- 
cerned, you  are  to  speak  the  language  of  nature.  When 
your  veiy  existence  is  at  stake,  are  you  to  speak  the 
technical  language  of  books,  and  to  be  confined  to  the 
limited  rules  of  technical  criticism? — to  those  tricks 
and  quirks — those  little  twists  and  twirls  of  low  chica- 
nery and  sophistry,  which  are  so  beneficial  to  profes- 
sional men?  Alexander  said,  in  the  style  of  that  mighty 
man  to  the  Thessalians,  You  are  free  from  the  Thebans, 
and  the  debts  they  owed  them  were  thereby  remitted. 
Every  other  sovereign  has  the  same  right  to  use  the 
same  natural,  manly,  and  laconic  language;  not  when 
he  is  victorious  only,  but  in  every  situation,  if  he  be  in 
a  state  of  hostility  with  other  nations.  The  acts  use 
not  the  language  of  technicality,  they  speak  not  of 
releases,  discharges,  and  acquittances;  but  they  speak 
the  legislative  will,  in  simple  speech,  to  the  human 
understanding — a  style  better  suited  to  the  purpose, 
than  the  turgid  and  pompous  phraseology  of  many  great 
writers." 

Mr.  Ronald,  who  was  a  native  of  Scotland,  and  at  the 
commencement  of  the  revolutionary  war  at  least,  had 
been  suspected  of  being  not  very  warm  in  the  American 
cause,  had  urged  the  objection  to  the  national  compe- 
tency of  Virginia,  at  the  time  of  the  passage  of  those 


368 


SKETCHES  OF  THE 


laws  of  confiscation  and  forfeiture,  on  which  the  de- 
fendant relied;  and  in  the  course  of  his  observations, 
had  unfortunately  used  the  remark,  that  Virginia  was, 
at  that  time,  nothing  more  than  a  revolted  colony. 
When  Mr.  Henry  came  to  notice  this  remark,  he  gave 
his  spectacles  the  war  cant:  "But  another  observa- 
tion," said  he,  "was  made;  that  by  the  law  of  nations 
we  had  not  a  right  to  legislate  on  the  subject  of  British 
debts — we  were  not  an  independent  nation — and  I 
thought,"  said  he,  raising  himself  aloft,  while  his  frame 
dilated  itself  beyond  the  ordinary  size,  "  that  I  heard 
the  word — revolt!"  At  this  word,  he  turned  upon  Mr. 
Ronald,  his  piercing  eye,  and  knit  his  brows  at  him, 
with  an  expression  of  indignation  and  contempt,  which 
seemed  almost  to  annihilate  him.  It  was  like  a  stroke 
of  lightning.  Mr.  Ronald  shrunk  from  the  withering 
look:  and,  pale  and  breathless,  cast  down  his  eyes, 
"  seeming,"  says  my  informant,  "  to  be  in  quest  of  an 
auger  hole,  by  which  he  might  drop  through  the  floor, 
and  escape  for  ever  from  mortal  sight."  Mr.  Henry 
perceived  his  suffering,  and  his  usual  good  nature  imme- 
diately returned  to  him.  He  raised  his  eyes  gently 
towards  the  court,  and  shaking  his  head,  slowly,  with  an 
an  expression  of  regret,  added,  "  I  wish  I  had  not 
heard  it:  for  although  innocently  meant  (and  I  am  sure 
that  it  was  so,  from  the  character  of  the  gentleman  who 
mentioned  it)  yet  the  sound  displeases  me — it  is  unplea- 
sant." Mr.  Ronald  breathed  again,  and  looked  up,  and 
his  generous  adversary  dismissed  the  topic,  to  resume 
it  no  more. 

It  may  give  the  reader  some  idea  of  the  amplitude  of 
this  argument,  when  he  is  told,  that  Mr.  Henry  was  en- 
gaged three  days  successively  in  its  delivery,  and  some 
faint  conception  of  the  enchantment  which  he  threw 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  369 

over  it,  when  he  learns  that  although  it  turned  entirely 
on  questions  of  law,  yet  the  audience  mixed  as  it  was, 
seemed  so  far  from  being  wearied,  that  they  followed 
him  throughout,  with  increased  enjoyment.  The  room 
continued  full  to  the  last;  and  such  was  the  "  the  listen- 
ing silence"  with  which  he  was  heard,  that  not  a  syllable 
that  he  uttered,  is  believed  to  have  been  lost.  When  he 
finally  sat  down,  the  concourse  rose,  with  a  general  mur- 
mur of  admiration;  the  scene  resembled  the  breaking 
up  and  dispersion  of  a  great  theatrical  assembly, 
which  had  been  enjoying  for  the  first  time,  the 
exhibition  of  some  new  and  splendid  drama:  the 
speaker  of  the  house  of  delegates,  was  at  length  able 
to  command  a  quorum  for  business;  and  every  quar- 
ter of  the  city,  and  at  length,  every  part  of  the 
state,  was  filled  with  the  echoes  of  Mr.  Henry's 
eloquent  speech. 

His  practise,  during  these  last  years,  of  which  we 
are  now  speaking,  was  confined  pretty  generally  to 
eases  of  consequences.  He  did  not  like  the  profession, 
and  was  not  willing  to  embark  in  any  case,  for  the 
ordinary  fees.  I  have  an  interesting  sketch  of  him,  in 
his  professional  character,  during  those  years,  from  the 
same  elegant  pen,  which  in  a  former  page  exhibits  the 
parallel  between  him  and  Mr.  Lee,  in  1784:  it  is  as 
follows: 

61  At  the  bar,  Mr.  Henry  was  eminently  successful 
When  I  saw  him  there,  he  must,  from  the  course  of  his 
life,  which  had  been  chiefly  political,  have  become 
"somewhat  rusty  in  the  learning  of  his  profession:  yet  I 
considered  him  as  a  good  lawyer:  he  seemed  to  be  well 
acquainted  with  the  rules  and  canons  of  property.  He 
would  not,  indeed,  undergo  the  drudgery  necessary  fpr 


370  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

complicated  business;  yet  I  am  told,  that  in  the  British 
debt  cause,  he  astonished  the  public  not  less  by  the  mat- 
ter, than  the  manner  of  his  speech.  It  was  however  as 
a  criminal  lawyer,  that  his  eloquence  had  the  fairest 
scope,  and  in  that  character  I  have  seen  him.  He 
was  perfect  master  of  the  passions  of  his  auditory, 
whether  in  the  tragic,  or  comic  line.  The  tones  of  his 
voice,  to  say  nothing  of  his  matter  and  gesture,  were  in- 
sinuated into  the  feelings  of  his  hearers,  in  a  manner 
that  baffles  all  description.  It  seemed  to  operate  by 
mere  sympathy;  and  by  his  tones  alone,  it  seemed  to  me, 
that  he  could  make  you  ciy  or  laugh  at  pleasure.  I  will 
endeavour  to  give  you  some  account  of  this  tragic,  and 
comic  effect  in  two  instances,  which  I  witnessed."' 

"About  the  year  1792,  one  Holland  killed  a  young 
man  in  Botetourt.  The  young  man  was  popular,  and 
lived,  I  think,  with  Mr.  King,  a  wealthy  merchant  in 
Fincastle,  who  employed  Mr.  John  Brackenridge  to 
assist  in  the  prosecution  of  Holland.  This  Holland 
had  gone  up  from  the  county  of  Louisa  as  a  school- 
master, but  had  turned  out  badly,  and  was  unpopular. 
The  killing  was  in  the  night,  and  was  generally  believed 
to  be  murder.  He  was  the  son  of  one  doctor  Holland, 
who  was  yet  living  in  Louisa,  and  had  been  one  of  Mr. 
Henry's  juvenile  friends  and  acquaintances.  It  was 
chiefly  at  the  instance  of  the  father,  and  for  a  very  mo- 
derate fee,  that  Mr.  Henry  undertook  to  go  out  to  the 
district  court  of  Greenbrier,  to  defend  the  prisoner. 
Such  were  the  prejudices  there,  that  the  people  had 
openly  and  repeatedly  declared  that  even  Patrick 
Henry  need  not  come  to  defend  Holland,  unless  he 
brought  a  jury  with  him.  On  the  day  of  trial,  the 
court  house  was  crowded.  I  did  not  move  from  my 
seat  for  fourteen  hours:  and  had  no  wish  to  do  so. 


LIFE  OP  HENRY.  871 

The  examination  of  the  witnesses  took  up  great  part 
of  the  time,  and  the  lawyers  were  probably  exhausted. 
Brackenridge  was  eloquent;  but  Henry  left  no  dry  eye 
in  the  court  house.  The  case  I  believe  was  murder; 
though  possibly,  manslaughter  only.  Mr.  Henry  laid 
hold  of  this  possibility  with  such  effect,  as  to  make  all 
forget  that  Holland  had  killed  the  store-keeper  at  all; 
and  presented  the  deplorable  case  of  the  jury's  killing 
Holland,  an  innocent  man.  By  that  force  of  descrip- 
tion which  he  possessed  in  so  wonderful  a  degree,  he 
exhibited,  as  it  were,  at  the  clerk's  table,  old  Holland 
and  his  wife,  who  were  then  in  Louisa;  but  the  draw- 
ing was  so  powerful,  and  so  true  to  nature,  that  we 
seemed  to  see  them  before  us,  and  to  hear  them  asking 
of  the  jury,  '  where  is  our  son?  what  have  you  done 
with  him?'  All  this  was  done  in  a  manner  so  solemn 
and  touching,  and  a  tone  so  irresistible,  that  it  was  im- 
possible for  the  stoutest  heart  not  to  take  sides  with  the 
criminal:  as  for  the  jury,  they  lost  sight  of  the  murder 
they  were  trying,  and  wept  most  profusely,  with  old 
Holland  and  his  wife,  whom  Mr.  Henry  painted,  and 
perhaps  proved  to  be  very  respectable.  During  the 
examination  of  the  evidence,  the  bloody  clothes  had 
been  brought  in:  Mr.  Henry  objected  to  their  exhibi- 
tion, and  applied  most  forcibly  and  pathetically  An- 
thony's remark  on  Caesar's  wounds,  on  those  dumb 
mouths  which  would  raise  the  stones  of  Rome  to  mu- 
tiny. He  urged  that  this  sight  would  totally  deprive 
the  jury  of  their  judgment,  which  would  be  merged  in 
their  feelings.  The  court  was  divided,  and  the  motion 
fell.  The  result  of  the  trial  was,  that  after  the  retire- 
ment of  an  half  or  quarter  of  an  hour,  the  jury  brought 
in  a  verdict  of  not  guilty;  but  on  being  reminded  by 
the-  court  that  they  might  find  a  degree  of  homicide* 


372  SKETCHES    OF   THE 

inferior  to  murder,  they  altered  their  verdict  to  guilty 
of  manslaughter.'" 

"  Mr.  Henry  was  not  less  successful  in  the  comic 
line,  when  it  became  necessary  to  resort  to  it.  You  have 
no  doubt  heard  how  he  defeated  John  Hook,  by  raising 
the  cry  of  beef  -against  him.  I  will  give  you  a  similar 
instance.  In  the  year  179,2,  there  were  many  suits  on 
the  south  side  of  James  river,  for  inflicting  Lynch's 
law*  A  verdict  of  five  hundred  pounds  had  been  given 
in  Prince  Edward  district  court,  in  a  case  of  this  kind. 
This  alarmed  the  defendant  in  the  next  case,  who  em- 
ployed Mr.  Henry  to  defend  him.  The  case  was,  that 
a  waggoner  and  the  plaintiff  were  travelling  to  Rich- 
mond together,  when  the  waggoner  knocked  down  a 
turkey,  and  put  it  into  his  waggon.  Complaint  was 
made  to  the  defendant,  a  justice  of  the  peace;  both  the 
parties  were  taken  up,  and  the  waggoner  agreed  to  take 
a  whipping,  rather  than  be  sent  to  jail:  but  the  plaintiff 
refused:  the  justice,  however,  gave  him  also  a  small 
flagellation;  and  for  this  the  suit  was  brought.  The  plain- 
tiff, by  way  of  taking  off  the  force  of  the  defence,  insisted, 
that  he  was  wholly  innocent  of  the  act  committed.  Mr. 
Henry,  on  the  contrary,  contended,  that  he  was  a  parry, 
present,  aiding  and  assisting.  In  the  course  of  his 
remarks,  he  expressed  himself  thus:  '  But,  gentlemen 
of  the  jury,  the  plaintiff  tells  you  he  had  nothing  to  do 
with  the  turkey — I  dare  say,  gentlemen,  not  until  it  ivas 
roasted.3  &c.  He  pronounced  this  word  roasted  with 
such  rotundity  of  voice,  such  a  ludicrous  whirl  of  the 


*  Thirty -nine  lashes,  inflicted  without  trial  or  law,  on  mere  suspicion  of 
guilt,  which  could  not  be  regularly  proven.  This  lawless  practise,  which, 
sometimes  by  the  order  of  a  magistrate,  sometimes  without,  prevailed  exten- 
sively in  the  upper  counties  on  James  river,  took  its  name  from  the  gentle- 
man who  set  the  first  example  of  it 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  37S 

tongue,  and  in  a  manner  so  indescribably  comical,  that 
it  threw  every  one  into  a  fit  of  laughter  at  the  plaintiff, 
who  stood  up  in  the  place  usually  allotted  to  criminals; 
and  the  defendant  was  let  off,  with  little  or  no  da- 
mages." 

The  case  of  John  Hook,  to  which  my  correspondent 
alludes,  is  worthy  of  insertion.  Hook  was  a  Scotchman, 
a  man  of  wealth,  and  suspected  of  being  unfriendly  to 
the  American  cause.  During  the  distresses  of  the 
American  army,  consequent  on  the  joint  invasion  of 
Cornwallis  and  Phillips  in  1781,  a  Mr.  Venable,  an  army 
commissary,  had  taken  two  of  Hook's  steers  for  the  use 
of  the  troops.  The  act  had  not  been  strictly  legal;  and 
on  the  establishment  of  peace,  Hook,  under  the  advice 
of  Mr.  Cowan,  a  gentleman  of  some  distinction  in  the 
law,  thought  proper  to  bring  an  action  of  trespass  against 
Mr.  Venable,  in  the  district  court  of  New  London.  Mr. 
Henry  appeared  for  the  defendant,  and  is  said  to  have 
disported  himself  in  this  cause  to  the  infinite  enjoyment 
of  his  hearers,  the  unfortunate  Hook  always  excepted. 
After  Mr.  Henry  became  animated  in  the  cause,  says  a 
correspondent,*  he  appeared  to  have  complete  controul 
over  the  passiens  of  his  audience:  at  one  time  he  ex- 
cited their  indignation  against  Hook:  vengeance  was 
visible  in  every  countenance:  again,  when  he  chose  to 
relax  and  ridicule  him,  the  whole  audience  was  in  a 
roar  of  laughter.  He  painted  the  distresses  of  the 
American  army,  exposed  almost  naked  to  the  rigour  of 
a  winter's  sky,  and  marking  the  frozen  ground  over 
which  they  marched,  with  the  blood  of  their  unshod 
feet;  where  was  the  man,  he  said,  who  had  an  Ameri- 
can heart  in  his  bosom,  who  would  not  have  thrown 

*  Judge  Stuart 


374  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

open  his  fields,  his  barns,  his  cellars,  the  doors  of  his 
house,  the  portals  of  his  breast,  to  have  received  with 
open  arms,  the  meanest  soldier  in  that  little  band  of 
famished  patriots?  Where  is  the  man? — There  he 
stands — but  whether  the  heart  of  an  American  beats 
in  his  bosom,  you,  gentlemen,  are  to  judge.  He  then 
carried  the  jury,  by  the  powers  of  his  imagination,  to 
the  plains  around  York,  the  surrender  of  which  had 
followed  shortly  after  the  act  complained  of:  he  depicted 
the  surrender  in  the  most  glowing  and  noble  colours  of 
his  eloquence — the  audience  saw  before  their  eyes  the 
humiliation  and  dejection  of  the  British,  as  they  march- 
ed out  of  their  trenches — they  saw  the  triumph  which 
lighted  up  every  patriotic  face,  and  heard  the  shouts  of 
victory,  and  the  cry  of  Washington  and  liberty,  as  it 
rung  and  echoed  through  the  American  ranks,  and  was 
reverberated  from  the  hills  and  shores  of  the  neighbour- 
ing river — "  but,  hark,  what  notes  of  discord  are  these 
which  disturb  the  general  joy,  and  silence  the  acclama- 
tions of  victory — they  are  the  notes  of  John  Hook, 
hoarsely  bawling  through  the  American  camp,  beef! 
beef!  beef!" 

The  whole  audience  were  convulsed:  a  particular  in- 
cident will  give  a  better  idea  of  the  effect,  than  any 
general  description.  The  clerk  of  the  court,  unable  t6 
command  himself,  and  unwilling  to  commit  any  breach 
of  decorum  in  his  place,  rushed  out  of  the  court  house, 
and  threw  himself  on  the  grass,  in  the  most  violent 
paroxysm  of  laughter,  where  he  was  rolling,  when 
Hook,  with  very  different  feelings,  came  out,  for  relief, 
into  the  yard  also.  "  Jemmy  Steptoe,"  said  he  to  the 
clerk,  "  what  the  devil  ails  ye,  mon?"  Mr.  Steptoe 
was  only  able  to  say,  that  he  could  not  help  it.r  "  Never 
mind  ye,"  said  Hook;  "  wait  till  Billy  Cowan  gets  up: 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  375 

he'll  show  him  the  laV  Mr.  Cowan,  however,  was  so 
completely  overwhelmed  by  the  torrent  which  bore 
upon  his  client,  that  when  he  rose  to  reply  to  Mr. 
Henry,  he  was  scarcely  able  to  make  an  intelligible  or 
audible  remark.  The  cause  was  decided  almost  by 
acclamation.  The  jury  retired  for  form  sake,  and 
instantly  returned  with  a  verdict  for  the  defendant. 
Nor  did  the  effect  of  Mr.  Henry's  speech  stop  here. 
The  people  were  so  highly  excited  by  the  tory  audacity 
of  such  a  suit,  that  Hook  began  to  hear  around  him  a 
cry  more  terrible  than  that  of  beef:  it  was  the  cry  of 
tar  and  feathers:  from  the  application  of  which,  it  is 
said,  that  nothing  saved  him  but  a  precipitate  flight 
and  the  speed  of  his  horse. 

I  have  not  attempted,  in  the  course  of  these  sketches, 
to  follow  Mr.  Henry  through  his  professional  career.  I 
have  no  materials  to  justify  such  an  attempt.  It  has 
been  indeed,  stated  to  me,  in  general,  that  he  appeared 
in  such  and  such  a  case,  and  that  he  shone  with  great 
lustre;  but  neither  his  speeches  in  those  cases,  nor  any 
point  of  his  argument,  nor  even  any  brilliant  passage 
has  been  communicated,  so  that  the  sketch  that  could 
be  given  of  them,  must  be  either  confined  to  a  meagre 
catalogue  of  the  causes,  or  the  canvass  must  be  filled  up 
by  my  own  fancy,  which  would  at  once,  be  an  act  of 
injustice  to  Mr.  Hemy,  and  a  departure  from  that  his- 
torical veracity,  which  it  has  been  my  anxious  study,  in 
every  instance,  to  observe. 

I  have  been  told,  for  example,  that  in  the  year  1774, 
Mr.  Henry  appeared  at  the  bar  of  the  general  court, 
in  defence  of  a  married  man  by  the  name  of  Henry 
Bullard,  indicted  for  the  murder  of  a  beautiful  girl, 
who  lived  in  his  house,  to  whom  he  had  unfortunately 
become  attached,  and  whom,  in  a  moment  of  frantic 


376  SKETCHES  OP  THE 

despair,  he  sacrificed  to  his  hopeless  passion.  The 
defence  is  said  to  have  been  placed  on  the  ground  of 
insanity;  and  it  is  easy  to  conceive  in  general,  the  figure 
which  Mr.  Henry  must  have  made  in  such  a  cause. 
Those  pathetic  powers  of  eloquence,  in  which  he  was 
so  pre-eminently  great,  had  ample  scope  for  their  exer- 
cise in  this  case;  and  we  can  credit,  without  difficulty, 
the  assertion,  that  he  deluged  the  house  with  tears,  and 
effected  the  acquittal  of  his  client.  But  this  is  all  that 
we  know  of  the  case.* 

So  also,  I  learn  that,  on  some  occasion,  after  the  war, 
he  appeared  at  the  bar  of  the  house  of  delegates,  in  sup- 
port of  a  petition  of  the  officers  of  the  Virginia  line,  who 
sought  to  be  placed  on  the  footing  of  those  who  had 
been  taken  on  continental  establishment:  and  that,  after 
having  depicted  their  services  and  their  sufferings,  in 
colours  which  filled  every  heart  with  sympathy  and 
gratitude,  he  dropped  on  his  knees,  at  the  bar  of  the 
house,  and  presented  such  an  appeal  as  might  almost 
have  softened  rocks,  and  bent  the  knotted  oak.  Yet 
no  vestige  of  this  splendid  speech  remains;  nor  have  I 
been  able,  after  the  most  diligent  inquiries,  to  ascer- 
tain the  year  in  which  it  occurred;  similar  peti- 
tions having  been  presented,  for  several  successive 
sessions. 

It  was  in  the  year  1794,  that  he  bade  a  final  adieu 
to  his  profession,  and  retired  to  the  bosom  of  his  own 
family.  He  retired,  loaded  with  honours,  public  and 
professional:  and  carried  with  him,  the  admiration,  the 

*  If  this  is  the  case  of  Henry  Bullard,  who  was  indicted  at  the  April  term 
of  1774,  for  the  murder  of  Mary  Pinner,  this  honour  claimed  by  my  corre- 
spondent for  Mr.  Henry,  is  not- due:  for  the  records  of  the  general  court 
show,  that  the  indictment,  although  originally  drawn  for  the  charge  of  mur- 
der, was  reduced  to  manslaughter  by  the  grand  jury;  of  which  offence  the 
prisoner  was  convicted.    There  is,  probably,  some  mistake  in  the  namp. 

» 


LIFE    OP   HENRY.  377 

gratitude,  the  confidence,  and  the  love  of  his  country. 
No  man  had  ever  passed  through  so  long  a  life  of  pub- 
lic service,  with  a  reputation  more  perfectly  unspotted. 
Nor  had  Mr.  Henry  on  any  occasion,  sought  security 
from  censure,  by  that  kind  of  prudent  silence  and 
temporizing  neutrality,  which  politicians  so  frequently 
observe.  On  the  contrary,  his  course  had  been  uni- 
formly active,  bold,  intrepid,  and  independent.  On 
every  great  subject  of  public  interest,  the  part  which 
he  had  taken  was  open,  decided,  manly;  his  country 
saw  his  motives,  heard  his  reasons,  approved  his  con- 
duct, rested  upon  his  virtue,  and  his  vigour;  and  con- 
templated with  amazement,  the  evolution  and  unremit- 
ted display  of  his  transcendent  talents.  For  more  than 
thirty  years,  he  had  now  stood  before  that  country — 
open  to  the  scrutiny  and  the  censure  of  the  invidious 
— yet  he  retired,  not  only  without  spot  or  blemish,  but 
with  all  his  laurels  blooming  full  and  fresh  upon  him — 
followed  by  the  blessings  of  his  almost  adoring  coun- 
trymen, and  cheered  by  that  most  exquisite  of  all  earthly 
possessions — the  consciousness  of  having  in  deed  and 
in  truth,  played  well  his  part.  He  had  now  too,  become 
disembarrassed  of  debt;  his  fortune  was  affluent;  and  he 
enjoyed  in  his  retirement,  that  ease  and  dignity,  which 
no  man  ever  more  richly  deserved. 


3b 


378  SKETCHES  OF  THE 


SECTION  X. 

Whatever  difference  of  opinion  may  exist  as  to 
other  parts  of  his  character,  in  this  the  concurrence  is 
universal;  that  there  never  was  a  man  better  consti- 
tuted than  Mr.  Henry,  to  enjoy  and  to  adorn  the  retire- 
ment, on  which  he  had  now  entered.  Nothing  can  be- 
more  amiable,  nothing  more  interesting  and  attaching, 
than  those  pictures  which  have  been  furnished  from 
every  quarter,  without  one  dissentient  stroke  of  the 
pencil,  of  this  great  and  virtuous  man  in  the  bosom  of 
private  life.  Mr.  Jefferson  says,  that  "  he  was  the  best 
humoured  companion  in  the  world."  His  disposition 
was  indeed  all  sweetness — his  affections  were  warm, 
kind,  and  social — his  patience  invincible — his  temper 
ever  unclouded,  cheerful,  and  serene — his  manners 
plain,  open,  familiar,  and  simple— his  conversation 
easy,  ingenuous,  and  unaffected — full  of  entertainment, 
full  of  instruction,  and  irradiated  with  all  those  light 
and  softer  graces,  which  his  genius  threw  without 
effort,  over  the  most  common  subjects.  It  is  said  that 
there  stood  in  the  court,  before  his  door,  a  large  wal- 
nut tree,  under  whose  shade  it  was  his  delight  to  pass 
his  summer  evenings,  surrounded  by  his  affectionate 
and  happy  family,  and  by  a  circle  of  neighbours  who 
loved  him  almost  to  idolatry.  Here  he  would  disport 
himself  with  all  the  careless  gaiety  of  infancy.  Here 
too,  he  would  sometimes  warm  the  bosoms  of  the  old, 
and  strike  fire  from  the  eyes  of  his  younger  hearers,  by 
recounting  the  tales  of  other  times;  by  sketching,  with 
the  boldness  of  a  master's  hand,  those  great  historic 


LIFE  OP  HENRY.  379 

incidents  in  which  he  had  borne  a  part;  and  by  draw- 
ing to  the  life,  and  placing  before  his  audience,  in 
colours  as  fresh  and  strong  as  those  of  nature,  the 
many  illustrious  men  in  every  quarter  of  the  continent, 
with  whom  he  had  acted  a  part  on  the  public  stage. 
Here  too,  he  would  occasionally  discourse  with  all  the 
wisdom  and  all  the  eloquence  of  a  Grecian  sage,  of  the 
various  duties  and  offices  of  life;  and  pour  forth  those 
lessons  of  practical  utility,  with  which  long  experience 
and  observation  had  stored  his  mind.  Many  were  the 
visitors  from  a  distance,  old  and  young,  who  came  on  a 
kind  of  pious  pilgrimage,  to  the  retreat  of  the  veteran 
patriot,  and  found  him  thus  delightfully  and  usefully 
employed — the  old  to  gaze  upon  him  with  long  remem- 
bered affection,  and  ancient  gratitude — the  young,  the 
ardent,  and  the  emulous,  to  behold  and  admire,  with 
swimming  eyes,  the  champion  of  other  days,  and  to 
look  with  a  sigh  of  generous  regret,  upon  that  height 
of  glory  which  they  could  never  hope  to  reach.  Blessed 
be  the  shade  of  that  venerable  tree — ever  hallowed  the 
spot  which  his  genius  has  consecrated!  Mr.  Henry  re- 
ceived these  visits,  with  all  his  characteristic  plainness 
and  modesty;  and  never  failed  to  reward  the  fatigue  of 
the  journey,  by  the  warmest  welcome,  and  by  the  un- 
ceremonious and  fascinating  familiarity,  with  which  he 
would  at  once  enter  into  conversation  with  his  new 
guests,  and  cause  them  to  forget  that  they  were 
strangers,  or  abroad.  Nor  must  the  reader  suppose 
that  in  these  conversations  he.assumed  any  airs  of  supe- 
riority; much  less  that  his  conversation  was,  as  in  some 
of  our  conspicuous  men,  a  continued,  imperious,  and 
didactic  lecture.  On  the  contrary,  he  carried  into  pri- 
vate life,  all  those  principles  of  equality  which  had 
governed  him  in  public.     That  ascendancy  indeed, 


380  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

which  proceeded  from  the  superior  energy  of  his  mind, 
and  the  weight  of  his  character,  would  manifest  itself 
unavoidably,  in  the  deference  of  his  companions:  but 
there  was  nothing  in  his  manner  which  would  have  ever 
reminded  them  of  it.  On  the  contrary,  it  seemed  to 
be  his  study  to  cause  them  to  forget  it,  and  to  decoy 
them  into  a  free  and  equal  interchange  of  thought.  If 
he  took  the  lead  in  conversation,  it  was  not  because  he 
sought  it;  but  because  it  was  forced  upon  him,  by  that 
silent  delight  with  which  he  perceived  that  his  com- 
pany preferred  to  listen  to  him. 

But  it  was  in  the  bosom  of  his  own  family,  where 
the  eye  of  every  visitor  and  even  every  neighbour  was 
shut  out — where  neither  the  love  of  fame,  nor  the  fear 
of  censure,  could  be  suspected  of  throwing  a  false 
light  upon  his  character--it  was  in  that  very  scene,  in 
which  it  has  been  said  that  "  no  man  is  a  hero/7  that  Mr. 
Henry's  heroism  shone  with  the  most  engaging  beauty.  It 
was  to  his  wife,  to  his  children,  to  his  servants,  that  his 
true  character  was  best  known:  to  this  grateful,  devoted, 
happy  circle,  were  best  known  the  patient  and  tender 
forbearance,  the  kind  indulgence,  the  forgiving  mild- 
ness, and  sweetness  of  his  spirit,  those  pure  and  warm 
affections,  which  were  always  looking  out  for  the  means 
of  improving  their  felicity,  and  that  watchful  prudence 
and  circumspection,  which  guarded  them  from  harm. 
What  can  be  more  amiable  than  the  playful  tenderness 
with  which  he  joined  in  the  sports  of  his  little  children, 
and  the  boundless  indulgence  with  which  he  received 
and  returned  their  caresses?  "  His  visitors/'  says  one 
of  my  correspondents,  "  have  not  unfrequently  caught 
him  lying  on  the  floor,  with  a  group  of  these  little  ones, 
climbing  over  him  in  every  direction,  or  dancing  around 
him,  with  obstreperous  mirth,  to  the  tune  of  his  violin, 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  381 

while  the  only  contest  seemed  to  be  who  should  make 
the  most  noise."  If  there  be  any  bachelor  so  cold  of 
heart  as  to  be  offended  at  this  anecdote,  I  can  only 
remind  him  of  the  remark  of  the  great  Agesilaus  to 
the  friend  who  found  him  riding  on  a  stick  among  his 
children,  "  don't  mention  it,  till  you  are  yourself  a  fa- 
tlier." 

Such  were  the  scenes  of  domestic  and  social  bliss, 
such  the  delicious  tranquillity,  in  which  Mr.  Henry 
passed  the  first  years  of  his  retirement.  Yet  this  re- 
treat, which  so  well  deserved  to  have  been  considered 
as  sacred,  was  doomed  in  a  few  years  to  be  disturbed 
by  the  bickerings  of  political  party. 

Since  Mr.  Henry^s  retirement  from  public  life,  new 
parties  had  arisen  in  the  United  States,  whose  animosi- 
ties had  been  carried  to  an  alarming  height  The  fede- 
ralists, who  supported  the  measures  of  the  new  govern- 
ment, throughout,  were  accused  by  their  adversaries  of 
a  disposition  to  strain  the  constructive  powers  of  the 
constitution  to  their  highest  possible  pitch;  of  a  secret 
wish  to  convert  the  government  into  a  substantial  mo- 
narchy, at  least;  to  which  purpose,  the  assumption  of 
state  debts,  the  establishment  of  the  funding  system, 
and  of  the  national  bank,  the  alarming  increase  of  the 
public  debt,  the  imposition  of  a  heavy  load  of  internal 
taxes,  the  establishment  of  an  army  and  a  navy,  with 
all  their  consequences  of  favouritism  and  extensive 
executive  patronage,  were  alleged  to  have  been  intro- 
duced. They  were  branded  with  the  name  of  aristo- 
crats, a  name  of  reproach  borrowed  from  the  parties  in 
France;  and  were  charged  with  being  inimical  to  the 
cause  of  human  liberty,  as  was  said  to  be  proven  by 
their  hostility  to  the  progress  of  the  French  revolution. 


382  SKETCHES    OF   THE 

as  well  as  by  the  alarming  character  of  those  measures 
which  they  were  pushing  forward  in  America.  They 
were  suspected  and  accused  of  a  preference  for  a  go- 
vernment of  ranks  and  orders,  and  a  secret  love  of  titles 
of  nobility;  of  which  it  was  said,  one  of  their  principal 
leaders  had  furnished  a  decisive  proof,  so  far  as  he  was 
concerned,  by  having  proposed  the  introduction  of  titles 
in  the  continental  convention  which  had  framed  the 
constitution.  The  party  which  urged  these  charges, 
took  the  name  of  republicans  and  democrats;  declared 
themselves  the  friends  of  liberty  and  the  people,  and  the 
firm  advocates  of  a  government  of  the  people  by  the 
people.  They  were  devoted,  with  enthusiasm,  to  the 
cause  of  liberty  in  France;  considered  man  as  the  only 
title  of  nobility  which  ought  to  be  admitted,  and  his 
freedom  and  happiness  as  the  sole  objects  of  govern- 
ment; this,  they  contended,  was  the  principle  on  which 
the  American  revolution  had  turned;  that  the  great 
objects  of  the  revolution  could  be  no  otherwise  attained, 
than  by  a  simple,  pure,  economical,  and  chaste  admi- 
nistration of  the  federal  government;  and  by  restricting 
the  several  departments,  under  the  new  constitution,  to 
the  express  letter  of  the  powers  assigned  to  them  by  that 
instrument. 

The  federalists,  on  the  other  hand,  denied  and  re- 
pelled, with  great  acrimony  and  vehemence,  the  charges 
which  had  been  urged  against  them  by  their  adversa- 
ries. They  contended  that  the  measures  complained 
of,  were  warranted  by  the  constitution,  and  were  neces- 
sary to  give  to  the  federal  government,  the  effect  which 
was  intended  by  its  adoption.  They  insisted  that  they 
were  simply,  the  friends  of  order  and  good  government; 
and  in  their  turn,  branded  their  adversaries  with  the 


LIFE    OP   HENRY.  383 

name  of  jacobins,  who  having  caught  the  mania  from 
France,  were  for  overturning  all  government,  and 
throwing  every  thing  into  anarchy  and  uproar,  in  the 
hope  of  rising  themselves  to  the  top  of  the  chaos.  They 
alleged  that  the  opposition  was  formed  of  the  dregs  of 
the  American  people,  headed  and  goaded  on  by  a  few 
designing  men,  and  fermented  into  faction  by  the  revo- 
lutionary elements  thrown  among  them,  from  abroad, 
in  the  shape  of  French  and  Irish  emigrants  and  con- 
victs. They  insisted,  that  it  was  indispensably  neces- 
sary to  the  peace  and  order  of  the  American  nation, 
that  those  foreign  incendiaries  should  be  driven  out 
from  the  land,  and  that  the  licentious  fury  of  our  own 
populace  also,  should  be  bridled.  Under  this  impres- 
sion, were  passed  those  alien  and  sedition  laws,  which 
are  supposed  to  have  put  an  end  to  the  federal  power 
in  America. 

It  is  not  my  function  to  decide  between  these  par- 
ties; nor  do  I  feel  myself  qualified  for  such  an  office.  I 
have  lived  too  near  the  times,  and  am  conscious  of  hav- 
ing been  too  strongly  excited  by  the  feelings  of  the  day, 
to  place  myself  in  the  chair  of  the  arbiter.  It  would, 
indeed,  be  no  difficult  task  to  present,  under  the  en- 
gaging air  of  historic  candour,  the  arguments  on  one 
side,  in  an  attitude  so  bold  and  commanding;  and  to 
exhibit  those  on  the  other,  under  a  form  so  faint  and 
shadowy,  as  to  beguile  the  reader  into  the  adoption  of 
my  own  opinions.  But  this  would  be  unjust  to  the 
opposite  party,  and  a  4isingenuous  abuse  of  the  confi- 
dence of  the  reader.  Let  us  then,  remit  the  question 
to  the  historian  of  future  ages;  who,  if  the  particular 
memory  of  the  past  times  shall  not  be  lost  in  those 
great  events   which  seem  preparing  for  the  nation. 


384  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

will  probably  decide,  that  as  in  most  family  quar- 
rels, both  parties  have  been  somewhat,  in  the 
wrong. 

For  my  purpose,  it  is  sufficient  to  state  the  rise  and 
existence  of  those  parties,  and  the  fact  that  their  colli- 
sion had  convulsed  the  whole  society.  Mr.  Henry, 
although  removed  from  the  immediate  scene  of  conten- 
tion, was  still  an  object  of  too  much  consequence  to  be 
viewed  with  indifference.  He  had  a  weight  of  charac- 
ter which  gave  to  his  opinions  a  preponderating  influ- 
ence on  every  subject,  and  both  parties  were  equally 
anxious  to  gain  him  to  their  cause.  His  expressions 
were  watched  with  the  most  anxious  attention,  and  it 
was  not  long  before  an  alarm  of  his  defection  from  the 
popular  cause,  was  given.  The  first  occasion  of  it 
I  discover,  was  the  treaty  of  1 794  with  Great  Britain, 
commonly  known  by  the  name  of  Jay's  treaty. 

It  will  be  remembered  by  the  reader,  that  Mr.  Henry 
had  objected  to  the  constitution,  on  the  ground  that  it 
gave  to  the  president  and  senate,  the  ivhole  treaty-mak- 
ing power.  This  construction  of  the  instrument,  was 
not  denied  in  the  state  convention;  but  on  the  contrary, 
was  at  least  impliedly  admitted;  and  the  provision  was 
vindicated  on  the  ground  that  the  power  of  treating 
could  be  no  where  more  safely  and  properly  lodged. 
When,  therefore,  the  republican  leaders  in  the  house  of 
representatives,  claimed  a  right  to  participate  in  the 
ratification  of  Jay^s  treaty,  Mr.  Henry  considered  them 
as  inconsistent  with  themselves,  and  as  departing  from 
their  own  construction  of  the  constitution.  This  charge 
and  the  defence,  have  both  been  made  known  to  me, 
by  the  following  letter  from  Mr.  Henry  to  his  daughter, 
Mrs.  Aylett: 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  385 

"  Bed  Hill,  August  20th,  1796. 

"'  My  dear  Betsy, 

"  Mr.  William  Aylett's  arrival  here,  with  your 
letter,  gave  me  the  pleasure  of  hearing  of  your  welfare, 
and  to  hear  of  that,  is  highly  gratifying  to  me,  as  I  so 
seldom  see  you,  &c.  (the  rest  of  this  paragraph  relates 
to  family  affairs.) 

"  As  to  the  reports  you  have  heard  of  my  changing 
sides  in  politics,  I  can  only  say  they  are  not  true. — 
I  am  too  old  to  exchange  my  former  opinions,  which 
have  grown  up  into  fixed  habits  of  thinking.  True  it 
is,  I  have  condemned  the  conduct  of  our  members  in 
congress,  because  in  refusing  to  raise  money  for  the 
purposes  of  the  British  treaty,  they  in  effect,  would 
have  surrendered  our  country  bound,  hand  and  foot,  to 
the  power  of  the  British  nation.  This  must  have  been 
the  consequence,  I  think;  but  the  reasons  for  thinking 
so,  are  too  tedious  to  trouble  you  with.  The  treaty  is, 
in  my  opinion,  a  very  bad  one  indeed.  But  what  must 
I  think  of  those  men,  whom  I  myself  warned  of  the 
danger  of  giving  the  power  of  making  laws  by  means 
of  treaty,  to  the  president  and  senate,  when  I  see  these 
same  men  denying  the  existence  of  that  power,  which 
they  insisted  in  our  convention,  ought  properly  to  be 
exercised  by  the  president  and  senate,  and  by  none 
other?  The  policy  of  these  men,  both  then  and  now, 
appears  to  me  quite  void  of  wisdom  and  foresight. 
These  sentiments  I  did  mention  in  conversation  in 
Richmond,  and  perhaps  others  which  I  don't  remember; 
but  sure  I  am,  my  first  principle  is,  that  from  the  British 
we  have  every  thing  to  dread.,  when  opportunities  of 
oppressing  us  shall  offer. 

Sc 


386  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

"  It  seems  that  eveiy  word  was  watched  which  I 
casually  dropped,  and  wrested  to  answer  party  views. 
Who  can  have  been  so  meanly  employed,  I  know  not — 
nor  do  I  care;  for  I  no  longer  consider  myself  as  an 
actor  on  the  stage  of  public  life.  It  is  time  for  me  to 
retire;  and  I  shall  never  more  appear  in  a  public  cha- 
racter, unless  some  unlooked  for  circumstance  shall 
demand  from  me  a  transient  effort,  not  inconsistent  with 
private  life — in  which  I  have  determined  to  continue. 
I  see  with  concern,  our  old  commander  in  chief  most 
abusively  treated — nor  are  his  long  and  great  services 
remembered,  as  any  apology  for  his  mistakes  in  an  office 
to  which  he  was  totally  unaccustomed.  If  he,  whose 
character  as  our  leader  during  the  whole  war,  was 
above  all  praise,  is  so  roughly  handled  in  his  old  age, 
what  may  be  expected  by  men  of  the  common  standard 
of  character?  I  ever  wished  he  might  keep  himself 
clear  of  the  office  he  bears,  and  its  attendant  difficul- 
ties— but  I  am  sorry  to  see  the  gross  abuse  which  is 
published  of  him.  Thus,  my  dear  daughter,  have  I 
pestered  you  with  a  long  letter  on  politics,  which  is  a 
subject  little  interesting  to  you,  except  as  it  may  involve 
my  reputation.  I  have  long  learned  the  little  value 
which  is  to  be  placed  on  popularity,  acquired  by  any 
other  way  than  virtue;  and  I  have  also  learned  that 
it  is  often  obtained  by  other  means.  The  view  which 
the  rising  greatness  of  our  country  presents  to  my  eyes, 
is  greatly  tarnished  by  the  general  prevalence  of  deism : 
which  with  me,  is  but  another  name  for  vice  and  de- 
pravity. I  am,  however,  much  consoled  by  reflecting,  that 
the  religion  of  Christ,  has  from  its  first  appearance  in  the 
world,  been  attacked  in  vain,  by  all  the  wits,  philoso- 
phers, and  wise  ones,  aided  by  every  power  of  man. 
and  its  triumph  has  been  complete.     What  is  there  in 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  387 

the  wit,  or  wisdom  of  the  present  deistical  writers  or 
professors,  that  can  compare  them  with  Hume,  Shafts- 
bury,  Bolingbroke,  and  others?  and  yet  these  have  been 
confuted,  and  their  fame  decaying;  in  so  much  that  the 
puny  efforts  of  Paine  are  thrown  in,  to  prop  their  tot- 
tering fabrick,  whose  foundations  cannot  stand  the  test 
of  time.  Amongst  other  strange  things  said  of  me,  I 
hear  it  is  said  by  the  deists  that  I  am  one  of  the  num- 
ber; and  indeed,  that  some  good  people  think  I  am  no 
christian.  This  thought  gives  me  much  more  pain, 
than  the  appellation  of  tory;  because  I  think  religion 
of  infinitely  higher  importance  than  politics;  and  I  find 
much  cause  to  reproach  myself,  that  I  have  lived  so 
long,  and  have  given  no  decided  and  public  proofs  of 
my  being  a  christian.  But,  indeed,  my  dear  child,  this 
is  a  character  which  I  prize  far  above  all  this  world 
has  or  can  boast.  And  amongst  all  the  handsome 
things  I  hear  said  of  you,  what  gives  me  the  greatest 
pleasure  is,  to  be  told  of  your  piety  and  steady  virtue. 
Be  assured  there  is  not  one  tittle,  as  to  disposition  or 
character,  in  which  my  parental  affection  for  you,  would 
suffer  a  wish  for  your  changing;  and  it  flatters  my  pride 
to  have  you  spoken  of,  as  you  are. 

"  Perhaps  Mr.  Roane  and  Anne  may  have  heard  the 
reports  you  mention.  If  it  will  be  any  object  with 
them  to  see  what  I  write  you,  show  them  this.  But 
my  wish  is  to  pass  the  rest  of  my  days,  as  much  as  may 
be,  unobserved  by  the  critics  of  the  world,  who  would 
show  but  little  sympathy  for  the  deficiencies  to  which 
old  age  is  so  liable.  May  God  bless  you,  my  dear  Betsy, 
and  your  children.  Give  my  love  to  Mr.  Aylett,  and 
believe  me  ever  your  affectionate  father, 

"  P.  Henry/' 


388  SKETCHES  OF   THE 

This  charge,  however,  had  not  deprived  Mr.  Henry 
of  the  confidence  of  his  country;  for  in  the  session  of 
the  legislature  which  followed  the  date  of  his  letter,  he 
was  for  the  third  time,  elected  the  governor  of  the  state. 
The  letter  by  which  he  declined  the  acceptance  of  that 
office  is  as  follows: 

"  To  the  honourable,   the  speaker  of   the  house  of 

delegates. 

u  Charlotte  County,  Nov.  29th,  1796. 

"Sir, 

"  I  have  just  received  the  honour  of  yours,  inform- 
ing me  of  my  appointment  to  the  chief  magistracy  of 
the  commonwealth.  And  I  have  to  beg  the  favour  of 
you  sir,  to  convey  to  the  general  assembly,  my  best 
acknowledgments,  and  warmest  gratitude  for  the  signal 
honour  they  have  conferred  on  me.  I  should  be  happy 
if  I  could  persuade  myself,  that  my  abilities  were  com- 
mensurate to  the  duties  of  that  office;  but  my  declining 
years  warn  me  of  my  inability. 

"  I  beg  leave  therefore,  to  decline  the  appointment, 
and  to  hope  and  trust  that  the  general  assembly  will  be 
pleased  to  excuse  me  for  doing  so;  as  no  doubt  can  be 
entertained  that  many  of  my  fellow-citizens  possess  the 
requisite  abilities  for  this  high  trust! 

"  With  the  highest  regard,  I  am,  sir,  your  most  obe- 
dient servant, 

"  P.  Henry/' 

This  was  the  last  testimonial  of  public  confidence 
which  Mr.  Henry  received  from  his  native  state.  The 
rumours  of  his  political  apostacy  became  strong  and 


LIFE    OF    HENRY.  389 

general.  He  was  a  prize  worth  contending  for;  and  it 
is  not  wonderful  therefore,  that  the  rival  parties  ob- 
served, with  the  most  jealous  distrust,  every  advance 
which  was  made  towards  him  by  the  other,  and  inter- 
preted such  advances  as  so  many  stratagems  to  gain 
him  over:  nor  is  it  wonderful,  if  during  the  fever  of 
that  hot  and  violent  struggle,  many  things  were  sup- 
posed to  be  seen,  which  did  not  in  fact  exist;  and  that 
those  which  did  exist,  were  sometimes  seen  under  false 
shapes  and  colours.  It  was  reported  at  that  day,  that, 
on  Mr.  Jefferson's  resignation  of  the  office  of  secretary 
of  state,  that  office  was  offered  to  Mr.  Henry,  in  the 
confidence,  that  while  the  offer  would  gratify  him,  he 
would  nevertheless  reject  it:  however  this  may  be,  it  is 
certain  that  the  embassy  to  Spain  was  offered  to  him, 
during  the  first  administration;  and  that  to  France,  dur- 
ing the  second.*  These  offers  were  known  at  the  time; 
and,  when  compared  with  his  advanced  age — the  large 
family  with  which  he  was  incumbered — his  settled  and 
well  known  purpose  of  retirement — and  the  consequent 
probability  that  these  offers  would  not  be  accepted — and 
the  sentiments  which  he  afterwards  expressed,  in  favour 
of  some  of  the  measures  of  administration,  which 
were  extremely  obnoxious  in  Virginia — those  offers 
were  considered  by  the  republicans,  as  so  many  strokes 
of  political  flattery,  addressed  to  the  vanity  of  an  old 
man,  and  which  had  been  but  too  successful  in  having 
won  him  to  the  federal  ranks.  That  he  approved  of  the 
alien  and  sedition  laws,  as  good  measures,  is  undenia- 
ble: indeed,  he  was  not  a  man  who  would  deny  any 
opinion  that  he  held:  and,  however  honest  might  have 
been  his  conviction,  both  of  the  constitutionality  and 

*  On  the  authority  of  judge  Winston. 


390  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

expediency  of  these  measures,  it  is  equally  undeniable, 
that  his  sentiments  in  relation  to  them,  combined  with 
the  above  causes,  by  which  those  sentiments  were  sus- 
pected of  having  been  influenced,  produced  an  ex- 
tremely unpropitious  effect  on  his  popularity  in  Vir- 
ginia. 

The  charge  of  apostacy  however,  implies  a  previous 
commitment  to  the  opposite  side:  but  the  evidence  that 
Mr.  Henry  ever  stood  committed  to  the  democratic  or 
to  any  other  party,  (except  the  great  American  party  of 
liberty  and  republican  government,)  has  not  yet  been 
seen  bv  the  author  of  these  sketches.  At  the  time  of 
his  retirement,  it  is  believed  that  the  post-constitutional 
parties  were  not  distinctly  marked.  He  had  no  oppor- 
tunity after  they  were  so  marked,  of  expressing  his 
opinion  publicly  in  favour  of  the  one  side  or  the  other. 
It  is  highly  probable,  that  his  opinions  did  not  coincide 
throughout,  with  those  of  either  side:  and  it  would  be 
rather  rash  to  infer,  from  his  disapprobation  of  one  or 
more  measures  of  the  administration,  or  from  his  general 
love  of  liberty,  that  he  must  of  necessity  have  been  attach- 
ed at  first  to  the  democratic  side.  Nor  would  it  be  more 
correct  to  infer,  from  his  having  resisted  the  adoption  of 
the  federal  constitution,  that  he  was  therefore  opposed  to 
the  measures  of  those  who  administered  it;  for  the  con- 
verse of  this  proposition,  which  must  be  equally  true, 
would  have  thrown  many  more  into  the  federal  ranks 
than  would  have  been  willing  to  acknowledge  the  con- 
nexion. Mr.  Henry  had  moreover  declared,  as  we  have 
seen,  in  the  last  speech  which  he  made  in  the  state  con- 
vention, in  opposition  to  the  constitution,  that  if  it  should 
be  adopted,  he  would  be  a  peaceable  citizen;  that  he 
would  not  go  to  violence,  but  that  he  would  seek  the 
correction   of  whatever  he  thought  amiss,  by  quiet 


LIFE  OF  HENRV.  391 

means.  Upon  the  whole,  it  would  seem  more  liberal, 
more  consonant  to  the  high  character  of  Mr.  Henry's 
mind,  with  his  time  of  life,  and  with  that  distant  and 
feeble  connexion  which  he  now  considered  himself  as 
holding  with  politics,  and  indeed  with  the  world — to  be- 
lieve that  he  looked,  without  passion  or  prejudice  of 
any  kind,  on  the  course  of  the  administration,  approving 
or  condemning,  according  to  his  own  judgment,  without 
reference  to  the  pleasure  or  opinions  of  either  side:  or 
if  we  must  suppose  him  under  personal  influence  of  any 
kind,  would  it  have  been  unpardonable  in  him,  to  have 
been  influenced  by  the  opinions  of  that  man,  who  had 
ever  stood  first  both  in  his  judgment  and  affections,  and 
whom  all  America  acknowledged  as  the  father  of  his 
country? 

Other  natural  causes  too,  may  be  fairly  considered 
as  having  united  their  influence  in  producing  this  differ- 
ence of  political  sentiment,  between  Mr.  Henry  and  the 
majority  of  his  state.  In  the  year  1797,  his  health 
began  to  decline,  and  continued  to  sink  gradually  to  the 
moment  of  his  death*  He  had  now  passed,  through 
a  stormy  life  to  his  sixtieth  year,  and  the  vigour  of  his 
mind,  exhausted  more  by  past  toils  than  by  years,  began 
to  give  way.  Those  energies  which  had  enabled  him 
to  brave  the  power  of  Great  Britain,  and  to  push  for- 
ward the  glorious  revolution  which  made  us  free,  existed 
no  longer  in  their  original  force.  The  usual  infirmities 
of  age  and  disease,  began  to  press,  sorely  and  heavily, 
upon  his  sinking  spirits.  He  was  startled  by  that  clash 
of  contending  parties,  which  rang  continually  around 
him,  and  invaded,  with  perpetually  increasing  horror, 
the  stillness  of  his  retreat.     His  retirement  cut  him  ofl£ 

*  Judge  Winston. 


39S  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

almost  entirely,  from  all  communication  with  those 
who  were  best  able  to  explain  the  grounds,  as  well  as 
the  character  and  measure  of  opposition  to  the  offen- 
sive measures,  which  was  intended;  and  the  spirit  and 
views  of  that  opposition,  were  no  doubt,  aggravated  to 
him  by  report.  Acting  as  those  things  did,  on  the  mind  of 
an  infirm  old  man;  worn  out  by  the  toils  and  troubles  of 
the  past  revolution,  and  naturally  wishing  for  repose; 
alarmed  too,  and  agonized  by  the  hideous  scenes  of 
that  revolution  which  was  then  going  on  in  France;  and 
tortured  by  the  apprehension,  that  those  scenes  were 
about  to  be  acted  over  again,  in  his  own  country — it  is 
not  surprising,  that  he  was  dismayed  by  the  vehemence 
of  that  political  strife  which  then  agitated  the  United 
States;  nor  would  it  be  surprising,  if  his  solicitude  to 
allay  the  ferment  and  restore  the  peace  of  society, 
should  in  some  degree,  have  obscured  the  decisions  of 
his  mind;  and  placed  him,  rather  by  his  fears  than  his 
judgment,  in  opposition  to  the  forcible  resistance,  which 
he  had  been  erroneously  led  to  consider,  as  meditated 
by  the  democratic  party.  In  a  mind  thus  prepared,  the 
strong  and  animated  resolutions  of  the  Virginia  assembly 
in  1798,  in  relation  to  the  alien  and  sedition  laws,  con- 
jured up  the  most  frightful  visions  of  civil  war,  disunion, 
blood,  and  anarchy;  and  under  the  impulse  of  these  phan- 
toms, to  make  what  he  considered  a  virtuous  effort  for 
his  country,  he  presented  himself  in  Charlotte  county, 
as  a  candidate  for  the  house  of  delegates,  at  the  spring 
election  of  1799. 

On  the  day  of  the  election,  as  soon  as  he  appeared 
on  the  ground,  he  was  surrounded  by  the  admiring  and 
adoring  crowd,  and  whithersoever  he  moved,  the  con- 
course followed  him.  A  preacher  of  the  Baptist  church, 
whose  piety  was  wounded  by  this  homage  paid  to  a 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  398 

mortal,  asked  the  people  aloud,  "  Why  they  thus  fol- 
lowed Mr.  Henry  about? — Mr.  Henry/'  said  he,  "  is 
not  a  God!"  "  No,"  said  Mr.  Henry,  deeply  affected 
both  by  the  scene  and  the  remark;  "  no,  indeed,  my 
friend;  I  am  but  a  poor  worm  of  the  dust — as  fleeting 
and  unsubstantial,  as  the  shadow  of  the  cloud  that  flies 
over  your  fields,  and  is  remembered  no  more."  The 
tone  with  which  this  was  uttered,  and  the  look  which 
accompanied  it,  affected  every  heart,  and  silenced  every 
voice.  Envy  and  opposition  were  disarmed  by  his 
humility;  the  recollection  of  his  past  services  rushed 
upon  every  memory,  and  he  "  read  his  history"  in  their 
swimming  eyes. 

Before  the  polls  were  opened,  he  addressed  the  peo- 
ple of  the  county  to  the  following  effect:  "  He  told  them 
that  the  late  proceedings  of  the  Virginian  assembly  had 
filled  him  with  apprehensions  and  alarm;  that  they  had 
planted  thorns  upon  his  pillow;  that  they  had  drawn  him 
from  that  happy  retirement  which  it  had  pleased  a 
bountiful  Pr  ovidence  to  bestow,  and  in  which  he  had 
hoped  to  pass,  in  quiet,  the  remainder  of  his  days;  that 
the  state  had  quitted  the  sphere  in  which  she  had  been 
placed  by  the  constitution;  and  in  daring  to  pronounce 
upon  the  validity  of  federal  laws,  had  gone  out  of  her 
jurisdiction,  in  a  manner  not  warranted  by  any  authori- 
ty, and  in  the  highest  degree  alarming  to  every  consider- 
ate man;  that  such  opposition  on  the  part  of  Virginia,  to 
the  acts  of  the  general  government,  must  beget  their  en- 
forcement by  military  power;  that  this  would  probably 
produce  civil  war;  civil  war,  foreign  alliances;  and  that 
foreign  alliances,  must  necessarily  end  in  subjugation 
to  the  powers  called  in.  He  conjured  the  people  to 
pause  and  consider  well,  before  they  rushed  into  such  a 
desperate  condition,  from  which  there  could  be  no  re- 

3d 


394  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

treat.  He  painted  to  their  imaginations,  Washington, 
at  the  head  of  a  numerous  and  well  appointed  army, 
inflicting  upon  them  military  execution:  '  and  where 
(he  asked)  are  our  resources  to  meet  such  a  con- 
flict?— Where  is  the  citizen  of  America  who  will 
dare  to  lift  his  hand  against  the  father  of  his  coun- 
try?' A  drunken  man  in  the  crowd,  threw  up  his 
arm,  and  exclaimed  that  c  he  dared  to  do  it.' — f  No,' 
answered  Mr.  Henry,  rising  aloft  in  all  his  majesty: 
'  you  dare  not  do  it:  in  such  a  'parricidal  attempt,  the 
steel  would  drop  from  your  nerveless  arm!'  c  The 
look  and  gesture  at  this  moment,  (says  a  correspondent,) 
gave  to  these  words  an  energy  on  my  mind,  unequalled 
by  any  thing  that  I  have  ever  witnessed.'  Mr.  Henry, 
proceeding  in  his  address  to  the  people,  asked,  '  whe- 
ther the  county  of  Charlotte  would  have  any  authority 
to  dispute  an  obedience  to  the  laws  of  Virginia;  and  he 
pronounced  Virginia  to  be  to  the  union,  what  the  county 
of  Charlotte  was  to  her.  Having  denied  the  right  of  a 
state  to  decide  upon  the  constitutionality  of  federal  laws, 
he  added,  that  perhaps  it  might  be  necessary  to  say 
something  of  the  merits  of  the  laws  in  question.  His 
private  opinion  was,  that  they  were  Q  good  and  proper.' 
But,  whatever  might  be  their  merits,  it  belonged  to  the 
people,  who  held  the  reins  over  the  head  of  congress, 
and  to  them  alone,  to  say  whether  they  were  acceptable 
or  otherwise,  to  Virginians;  and  that  this  must  be  done 
by  way  of  petition.  That  congress  were  as  much  our 
representatives  as  the  assembly,  and  had  as  good  a  right 
to  our  confidence.  He  had  seen  with  regret,  the  unli- 
mited power  over  the  purse  and  sword,  consigned  to  the 
general  government;  but  that  he  had  been  overruled, 
and  it  was  now  necessary  to  submit  to  the  constitutional 
exercise  of  that  power.     '  If/  said  he,  '  I  am  asked 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  395 


0 


what  is  to  be  done,  when  a  people  feel  themselves  into- 
lerably oppressed,  my  answer  is  ready: — Overturn  the 
government.  But  do  not,  I  beseech  you,  carry  matters 
to  this  length,  without  provocation.  Wait  at  least  until 
some  infringement  is  made  upon  your  rights,  and  which 
cannot  otherwise  be  redressed;  for  if  ever  you  recur  to 
another  change,  you  may  bid  adieu  for  ever  to  repre- 
sentative government.  You  can  never  exchange  the 
present  government,  but  for  a  monarchy.  If  the  admi- 
nistration have  done  wrong,  let  us  all  go  wrong  together, 
rather  than  split  into  factions,  which  must  destroy  that 
union  upon  which  our  existence  hangs.  Let  us  pre- 
serve our  strength  for  the  French,  the  English,  the  Ger- 
mans, or  whoever  else  shall  dare  to  invade  our  territory:, 
and  not  exhaust  it  in  civil  commotions  and  intestine 
wars/  He  concluded,  by  declaring  his  design  to  exert 
himself  in  the  endeavour  to  allay  the  heart-burnings  and 
jealousies  which  had  been  fomented  in  the  state  legisla- 
ture ;  and  he  fervently  prayed,  if  he  was  deemed  un- 
worthy to  effect  it,  that  it  might  be  reserved  to  some 
other  and  abler  hand,  to  extend  this  blessing  over  the 
community." 

This  was  the  substance  of  the  speech  written  down  at 
the  time  by  one  of  his  hearers.  "  There  was/'  says 
the  writer,  "  an  emphasis  in  his  language,  to  which, 
like  the  force  of  his  articulation,  and  the  commanding- 
expression  of  his  eye,  no  representation  can  do  justice; 
yet  I  am  conscious  of  having  given  a  correct  transcript 
of  his  opinions,  and  in  many  instances  his  very  expres- 


sion/5 


Such  was  the  last  effort  of  Mr.  Henry's  eloquence: 
the  power  of  the  noon  day  sun  was  gone;  but  its  set- 
ting splendours  were  not  less  beautiful  and  touching. 


39G  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

After  this  speech,  the  polls  were  opened;  and  he  was 
elected  by  his  usual  commanding  majority. 

His  intention  having  been  generally  known  for  some 
time  before  the  period  of  the  state  elections,  the  most 
formidable  preparations  were  made  to  oppose  him  in 
the  assembly.  Mr.  Madison,  (the  late  president  of  the 
United  States,)  Mr.  Giles  of  Amelia,  Mr.  Taylor  of 
Caroline,  Mr.  Nicholas  of  Albemarle,  and  a  host  of 
young  men  of  shining  talents,  from  every  part  of  the 
state,  were  arrayed  in  the  adverse  rank,  and  commanded 
a  decided  majority  in  the  house.  But  heaven  in  its 
mercy,  saved  him  from  the  unequal  conflict.  The 
disease  which  had  been  preying  upon  him  for  two 
years,  now  hastened  to  its  crisis;  and  on  the  sixth  day 
of  June,  1799,  this  friend  of  liberty  and  of  man,  was  no 
more. 

Here  let  us  pause.  The  storm  of  1799,  thank  hea- 
ven! has  passed  away;  and  we  again  enjoy  the  calm 
and  sunshine  of  domestic  peace.  We  are  able,  now,  to 
see  with  other  eyes,  and  to  feel  with  far  different  hearts. 
Who  is  there,  that,  looking  back  upon  the  part  which 
he  bore  in  those  scenes,  can  say  that  he  was  at  no  time 
guilty  of  any  fault  of  conduct,  any  error  of  opinion,  or 
any  vicious  excess  of  feeling?  The  man  who  can  say 
this,  is  either  very  much  to  be  pitied,  or  most  exceed- 
ingly to  be  envied.  But  whatever  we  may  be  disposed 
to  say  or  to  think  of  ourselves,  there  can  be  very  little 
doubt,  that  that  Being,  who  is  the  searcher  of  hearts, 
sees  very  much  during  that  period,  to  be  forgiven  in  us 
all.  It  would  indeed,  be  presumptuous  in  the  extreme, 
amid  the  universal  admission  which  is  made,  of  the  im- 
perfection of  human  nature,  in  the  happiest  circum- 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  397 

stances,  to  contend  for  its  infallibility,  while  acting 
under  the  scourge  of  the  most  angry  and  vindictive  pas- 
sions. 

Let  it  be  admitted  then,  that  during  the  period 
of  which  we  are  speaking,  Mr.  Henry  was  guilty  of 
a  political  aberration;  but  let  all  the  peculiar  circum- 
stances of  his  case,  which  have  been  enumerated,  be 
taken  into  the  account;  and  let  it  be  farther  remembered, 
that  if  he  did  go  astray,  as  the  majority  of  the  state  be- 
lieve, he  strayed  in  company  with  the  father  of  his 
country— and  where  is  the  heart  so  cold  and  thank- 
less, as  to  balance  a  mistake  thus  committed,  against  a 
long  life  of  such  solid,  splendid,  and  glorious  utility? 
Certainly  not  in  Virginia — and  it  is  to  Virginians  only, 
that  this  appeal  is  made.  The  sentiments  now  so  uni- 
versally expressed  in  relation  to  Mr.  Henry,  evince, 
that  the  age  of  party  resentment  has  passed  away, 
and  that  that  of  the  noblest  gratitude  has  taken  its  place. 
But  let  us  return  to  our  narrative. 

At  the  session  of  the  assembly  immediately  follow- 
ing Mr.  Henry's  death,  before  the  spirit  of  party  had 
time  to  relent,  and  give  way  to  that  generous  feeling 
of  grateful  veneration  for  him,  which  now  pervades  the 
state,  a  federal  member  of  the  house  moved  the  follow- 
ing resolution: 

"  The  general  assembly  of  Virginia,  as  a  testimonial 
of  their  veneration  for  the  character  of  their  late  illus- 
trious fellow-citizen,  Patrick  Henry,  whose  unrivalled 
eloquence  and  superior  talents,  were  in  times  of  pecu- 
liar peril  and  distress,  so  uniformly,  so  powerfully,  and 
so  successfully,  devoted  to  the  cause  of  freedom,  and  of 
his  country — and,  in  order  to  invite  the  present  and 


398  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

future  generations  to  an  imitation  of  his  virtues,  and  an 
emulation  of  his  fame — 

"  Resolved,  That  the  executive  be  authorized  and 
requested,  to  procure  a  marble  bust  of  the  said  Patrick 
Henry,  at  the  public  expense,  and  to  cause  the  same 
to  be  placed  in  one  of  the  niches  of  the  hall  of  the  house 
of  delegates/' 

Nothing  could  have  been  more  unfortunate  for  the 
success  of  this  resolution,  than  the  time  at  which  it  was 
brought  forward,  and  the  mover  by  whom  it  was  offer- 
ed. The  time,  as  we  have  seen,  was  during  that 
paroxysm  of  displeasure  against  Mr.  Henry,  which  even 
his  death,  although  it  had  abated,  had  not  entirely  allay- 
ed: and  the  mover,  was  a  gentleman  who  had  himself, 
been  recently  counted  on  the  republican  side  of  the 
house,  and  was  now  also,  smarting  under  the  charge  of 
apostacy.  All  the  angry  passions  of  the  house,  imme- 
diately arose  at  such  a  proposition,  from  such  a  quar- 
ter. A  republican  member,  moved  to  lay  the  resolution 
on  the  table;  the  gentleman  who  offered  it,  replied  with 
warmth,  that  if  it  were  so  disposed  of,  he  would  never 
call  it  up  again.  It  was  laid  upon  the  table,  and  has 
been  heard  of  no  more. 

Thus  lived,  and  thus  died,  the  celebrated  Patrick 
Henry  of  Virginia;  a  man  who  justly  deserves  to  be 
ranked  among  the  highest  ornaments,  and  noblest  bene- 
factors of  his  country.  Had  his  lot  been  cast  in  the 
republics  of  Greece  or  Rome,  his  name  would  have 
been  enrolled  by  some  immortal  pen,  among  the  expel- 
lers  of  tyrants  and  the  champions  of  liberty:  the 
proudest  monuments  of  national  gratitude  would  have 
risen  to  his  honour,  and  handed  down  his  memory  to 
future  generations.     As  it  is,  his  fame  as  yet,  is  left  to 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  .j99 

rest  upon  tradition,  and  on  that  short  notice  which 
general  history  can  take  of  him;  while  no  memorial, 
no  slab  even,  raised  by  the  hand  of  national  gratitude, 
points  us  to  his  grave,  or  tells  where  sleep  the  ashes  of 
the  patriot  and  the  sage.  May  we  not  hope,  that  this 
reproach  upon  the  state,  will  soon  be  wiped  away,  and 
that  ample  atonement  will  be  made  for  our  past 
neglect? 


401 


CONCLUSION. 

Mr.  Henry,  by  his  two  marriages,  was  the  father  of 
fifteen  children.  By  his  first  wife  he  had  six;  of  whom 
two  only  survived  him;  by  his  last,  he  had  six  sons  and 
three  daughters;  all  of  whom,  together  with  their  mo- 
ther, were  living  at  his  death. 

He  had  been  fortunate  during  the  latter  part  of  his 
life;  and,  chiefly  by  the  means  of  judicious  purchases 
of  lands,  had  left  his  family,  large  as  it  was,  not  only 
independent,  but  rich. 

In  his  habits  of  living,  he  was  remarkably  temperate 
and  frugal.  He  seldom  drank  any  thing  but  water; 
and  his  table,  though  abundantly  spread,  was  furnished 
only  with  the  most  simple  viands.  Necessity  had  im- 
posed those  habits  upon  him  in  the  earlier  part  of  his 
life;  and  use,  as  well  as  reason,  now  made  them  his 
choice. 

His  children  were  raised  with  little  or  no  restraint. 
He  seems  not  to  have  thought  very  highly  of  early  edu- 
cation. It  is  indeed  probable,  that  his  own  success, 
which  was  attributable  almost  entirely  to  the  natural 
powers  of  his  mind,  had  diminished  the  importance  of 
an  extensive  education  in  his  view.  But  although  they 
were  suffered  to  run  wild  for  some  years,  and  indeed, 
committed  to  the  sole  guidance  of  nature,  to  a  much 
later  period  than  usual,  yet  they  were  finally  all  well 
educated;  and  not  only  by  the  reflected  worth  of  their 
father,  but  by  their  own  merits,  have  always  occupied 
a  most  respectable  station  in  society. 

Mr.  Henry's  conversation  was  remarkably  pure  and 

3e 


402  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

chaste.  He  never  swore.  He  was  never  heard  to 
take  the  name  of  his  Maker  in  vain.  He  was  a  sincere 
christian,  though  after  a  form  of  his  own;  for  he  was 
never  attached  to  any  particular  religious  society,  and 
never  it  is  believed,  communed  with  any  church. 
A  friend  who  visited  him,  not  long  before  his  death, 
found  him  engaged  in  reading  the  bible:  "  here,"  said 
he,  holding  it  up,  "  is  a  book  worth  more  than  all  the 
other  books  that  were  ever  printed:  yet  it  is  my  mis- 
fortune never  to  have  found  time  to  read  it,  with  the 
proper  attention  and  feeling,  till  lately.  I  trust  in  the 
mercy  of  heaven,  that  it  is  not  yet  too  late/'  He  was 
much  pleased  with  Soame  Jenyns'  View  of  the  internal 
evidences  of  the  christian  religion;  so  much  so,  that 
about  the  year  1790,  he  had  an  impression  of  it  struck 
at  his  own  expense,  and  distributed  among  the  people. 
His  other  favourite  works  on  the  subject  were  Dod- 
dridge's "  Rise  and  Progress  of  Religion  in  the  Soul," 
and  Rutler's  "Analogy  of  Religion  Natural  and  Reveal- 
ed." This  latter  work,  he  used  at  one  period  of  his  life,  to 
style  by  way  of  pre-eminence,  his  bible.  The  selec- 
tion proves  not  only  the  piety  of  his  temper,  but  the  cor- 
rectness of  his  taste,  and  his  relish  for  profound  and 
vigorous  disquisition. 

His  morals  were  strict.  As  a  husband,  a  father,  a 
master,  he  had  no  superior.  He  was  kind  and  hospita- 
ble to  the  stranger,  and  most  friendly  and  accommodat- 
ing to  his  neighbours.  In  his  dealings  with  the  world, 
he  was  faithful  to  his  promise,  and  punctual  in  his  con- 
tracts, to  the  utmost  of  his  power. 

Yet  we  do  not  claim  for  him  a  total  exemption  from 
the  failures  of  humanity.  Moral  perfection  is  not  the 
property  of  man.  The  love  of  money  is  said.,  to  have 
been  one  of  Mr.  Henry's  strongest  passions.     In  his 


LIFE    OP   HENRF.  403 

desire  for  accumulation,  he  was  charged  with  wring- 
ing from  the  hands  of  his  clients,  and  more  particularly 
those  of  the  criminals  whom  he  defended,  fees  rather 
too  exorbitant.  He  was  censured  too,  for  an  attempt 
to  locate  the  shores  of  the  Chesapeake,  which  had 
theretofore  been  used  as  a  public  common,  although 
there  was  at  that  time,  no  law  of  the  state  which  pro- 
tected them  from  location.  In  one  of  his  earlier  pur- 
chases of  land,  he  was  blamed  also  for  having  availed 
himself  of  the  existing  laws  of  the  state,  in  paying  for 
it  in  the  depreciated  paper  currency  of  the  country;  nor 
was  he  free  from  censure  on  account  of  some  partici- 
pation which  he  is  said  to  have  had  in  the  profits  of  the 
Yazoo  trade.  He  was  accused  too,  of  having  been 
rather  more  vain  of  his  wealth,  towards  the  close  of  his 
life,  than  became  a  man  so  great  in  other  respects.  Let 
these  things  be  admitted,  and  "  let  thejman  who  is  with- 
out fault  cast  the  first  stone."  In  mitigation  of  these 
charges,  if  they  be  true,  it  ought  to  be  considered  that 
Mr.  Henry  had  been  during  the  greater  part  of  his  life, 
intolerably  oppressed  by  poverty  and  all  its  distressing 
train  of  consequences;  that  the  family  for  which  he 
had  to  provide  was  very  large;  and  that  the  bar,  although 
it  has  been  called  the  road  to  honour,  was  not  in  those 
days,  the  road  to  wealth.  With  these  considerations 
in  view,  charity  may  easily  pardon  him  for  having  con- 
sidered only  the  legality  of  the  means  which  he  used  to 
acquire  an  independence;  and  she  can  easily  excuse 
him  too,  for  having  felt  the  success  of  his  endeavours 
a  little  more  sensibly  than  might  have  been  becoming. 
He  was  certainly  neither  proud,  or  hard-hearted,  or 
penurious:  if  he  was  either,  there  can  be  no  reliance 
on  human  testimony;  which  represents  him  as  being, 
in  his  general  intercourse  with  the  world,  not   only 


404  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

rigidly  honest,  but  one  of  the  kindest,  gentlest,  and 
most  indulgent  of  human  beings.. 

While  we  are  on  this  ungrateful  subject  of  moral 
imperfection,  the  fidelity  of  history  requires  us  to  notice 
another  charge  against  Mr.  Henry.  His  passion  for 
fame  is  said  to  have  been  too  strong;  he  was  accused  of 
a  wish  to  monopolize  the  public  favour;  and  under  the 
influence  of  this  desire,  to  have  felt  no  gratification  in 
the  rising  fame  of  certain  conspicuous  characters;  to 
have  indulged  himself  in  invidious  and  unmerited  re- 
marks upon  them,  and  to  have  been  at  the  bottom  of  a 
cabal,  against  one  of  the  most  eminent.  If  these  things 
were  so — alas!  poor  human  nature!  It  is  certain  that 
these  charges  are  very  inconsistent  with  his  general 
character.  So  far  from  being  naturally  envious,  and 
disposed  to  keep  back  modest  merit,  one  of  the  finest 
traits  in  his  character,  was  the  parental  tenderness 
with  which  he  took  by  the  hand  every  young  man  of 
merit,  covered  him  with  his  segis  in  the  legislature,  and 
led  him  forward  at  the  bar.  In  relation  to  his  first  great 
rival  in  eloquence,  Richard  Henry  Lee,  he  not  only  did 
ample  justice  to  him  on  every  occasion,  in  public,  but 
defended  his  fame  in  private,  with  all  the  zeal  of  a 
brother;  as  is  demonstrated  by  an  original  correspond- 
ence between  those  two  eminent  men,  now  in  the 
hands  of  the  author.  Of  colonel  fcmis,  his  next  great 
rival,  he  entertained,  and  uniformly  expressed,  the  most 
exalted  opinion;  and  in  the  convention  of  1788,  as  will 
be  remembered,  paid  a  compliment  to  his  eloquence,  at 
once  so  splendid,  so  happy,  and  so  just,  that  it  will  live 
for  ever.  The  debates  of  that  convention,  abound  with 
the  most  unequivocal  and  ardent  declarations  of  his  re- 
spect, for  the  talents  and  virtues  of  the  other  eminent 
gentlemen  who  were  arrayed  against  him — Mr.  Madi- 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  405 

son — Mr.  Pendleton— Mr.  Randolph.  Even  the  justly 
great  and  overshadowing  fame  of  Mr.  Jefferson,  never 
extorted  from  him,  in  public  at  least,  one  invidious  re- 
mark; on  the  contrary,  the  name  of  that  gentleman, 
who  was  then  in  France,  having  been  introduced  into 
the  debates  of  the  convention,  for  the  purpose  of  bor- 
rowing the  weight  of  his  opinion,  Mr.  Henry  spoke  of 
him  in  the  strongest  and  warmest  terms,  not  only  of 
admiration  but  of  affection — styling  him  "  our  illustrious 
fellow-citizen"  "  our  enlightened  and  worthy  country- 
man" "our  common  friend." 

The  inordinate  love  of  money  and  of  fame  are,  cer- 
tainly, base  and  degrading  passions.  They  have  some- 
times, tarnished  characters  otherwise  the  most  bright; 
but  they  will  find  no  advocate  or  apologist,  in  any  vir- 
tuous bosom.  In  relation  to  Mr.  Henry,  however,  we 
may  be  permitted  to  doubt  whether  th«  facts  on  which 
these  censures  (so  inconsistent  with  his  general  charac- 
ter) are  grounded,  have  not  been  misconceived;  and 
whether  so  much  of  them  as  is  really  true,  may  not 
be  fairly  charged  to  the  common  account  of  human  im- 
perfection. 

Mr.  Henry's  great  intellectual  defect  was  his  indo- 
lence. To  this  it  was  owing,  that  he  never  possessed 
that  admirable  alertness  and  vigorous  versatility  of 
mind,  which  turns  promptly  to  every  thing,  attends  to 
every  thing,  arranges  every  thing,  and  by  systematizing 
its  operations,  despatches  each  in  its  proper  time, 
and  place,  and  manner.  To  the  same  cause  it  is  to  be 
ascribed,  that  he  never  possessed  that  patient  drudgery, 
and  that  ready,  neat,  copious,  and  masterly  command  of 
details,  which  forms  so  essential  a  part  of  the  duties  both 
of  the  statesman  and  the  lawyer.  Hence  too,  he  did 
not  avail  himself  of  the  progress  of  science  and  litera- 


406  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

ture,  in  his  age.     He  had  not,  as  he  might  have  done, 
amassed   those   ample  stores   of  various,  useful,  and 
curious  knowledge,  which  are  so  naturally  expected  to 
be  found  in  a  great  man.     His  library  (of  which  an  in- 
ventory has  been  furnished  to  the  author)  was  extremely 
small;  composed  not  only  of  very  few  books,  but  those 
too,  commonly  odd  volumes.     Of  science  and  literature, 
he  knew  little  or  nothing  more  than  was  occasionally 
gleaned  from  conversation.     It  is  not  easy  to  conceive, 
what  a  mind  like  his  might  have  achieved  in  either,  or 
both  of  these  walks,  had  it  been  properly  trained  at  first, 
or  industriously  occupied  in  those  long  intervals   of 
leisure  which  he  threw  away.     One  thing  however,  may 
be  safely  pronounced;  that  had  that  mind  of  Herculean 
strength,  been  either  so  trained,  or  so  occupied,  he 
would  have  left  behind  him  some  written  monument, 
compared  with  which,  even  statues  and  pillars  would 
have  been  but  the  ephemerae  of  a  day.     But  he  seems 
to  have  been  of  Hobbes^s  opinion,  who  is  reported  to 
have  said  of  himself,  "  that  if  he  had  read  as  much  as 
other  men,  he  should  have  been  as  ignorant  as  they 
were."*     Mr.  Henry^s  book  was  the  great  volume  of 
human  nature.     In  this,  he  was  more  deeply  read  than 
any  of  his  countrymen.     He  knew  men  thoroughly; 
and  hence  arose  his  great  power  of  persuasion.f     His 
preference  of  this  study,  is  manifested  by  the  following 
incident: — he  met  once,  in  a  book  store,  with  the  late 
Mr.    Ralph  Wormley,  who,   although  a  great  book- 
worm, was  infinitely  more  remarkable  for  his  ignorance 


*  Bayle:  article  Hobbes. 

|  "  It  is  in  vain,"  says  tbe  chancellor  D'Ag-uesseau,  "  that  the  orator  flat- 
ters himself  with  having'  the  talent  to  persuade  men,  if  he  has  not  acquired 
that  of  knowing  them."    Discourse  i.  p.  1. 


LIFE    OF  HENRY.  407 

of  men,  than  Mr.  Henry  was  for  that  of  books — 
"  What,  Mr.  Wormley,"  said  he,  "still  buying  books?" 
"  Yes,"  said  Mr.  Wormley,  "  I  have  just  heard  of  a 
new  work,  which  I  am  extremely  anxious  to  peruse." 
"  Take  my  word  for  it,"  said  he,  "  Mr.  Wormley,  we 
are  too  old  to  read  books:  read  men — they  are  the  only 
volume  that  we  can  peruse  to  advantage."  But  Mr. 
Henry  might  have  perused  both,  with  infinite  advantage, 
not  only  to  himself,  but  to  his  country,  and  to  the 
world;  and  that  he  did  not  do  it,  may,  it  is  be- 
lieved, be  fairly  ascribed,  rather  to  the  indolence 
of  his  temper,  than  the  deliberate  decision  of  his 
judgment. 

Judge  Winston  says,  that  "  he  was,  throughout  life, 
negligent  of  his  dress:  but  this,  it  is  apprehended,  ap- 
plied rather  to  his  habits  in  the  country,  than  to  his 
appearance  in  public.  At  the  bar  of  the  general  court, 
he  always  appeared  in  a  full  suit  of  black  cloth,  or  velvet, 
and  a  tie  wig,  which  was  dressed  and  powdered  in  the 
highest  style  of  forensic  fashion:  in  the  winter  season, 
too,  according  to  the  costume  of  the  day,  he  wore  over 
his  other  apparel,  an  ample  cloak  of  scarlet  cloth;  and 
thus  attired,  made  a  figure  bordering  on  grandeur. 
While  he  filled  the  executive  chair,  he  is  said  to  have 
been  justly  attentive  to  his  dress  and  appearance;  "  not 
being  disposed  to  afford  the  occasion  of  humiliating 
comparisons  between  the  past  and  present  govern- 
ment." 

He  had  long  since  too,  laid  aside  the  offensive  rusti- 
city of  his  juvenile  manners.  His  manners,  indeed, 
were  still  unostentatious,  frank,  and  simple;  but  they 
had  all  that  natural  ease  and  unaffected  gracefulness, 
which  distinguish  the  circles  of  the  polite  and  well  bred. 
On  occasions,  too,  where  state  and  ceremony  were  ex- 


408  SKETCHES  OP  THE 

pectecl,  there  was  no  man  who  could  act  better  his  part. 
I  have  had  a  description  of  Mr.  Henry,  entering,  in  the 
full  dress  which  I  have  mentioned,  the  hall  of  the  dele- 
gates, at  whose  bar  he  was  about  to  appear  as  an  advo- 
cate, and  saluting  the  house,  all  around,  with  a  dignity 
and  even  majesty,  that  would  have  done  honour  to  the 
most  polished  courtier  in  Europe.  This,  however,  was 
only  on  extraordinary  occasions,  when  such  a  deport- 
ment was  expected,  and  was  properly  in  its  place.  In 
general,  his  manners  were  those  of  the  plain  Virginian 
gentleman — kind — open — candid — and  conciliating — 
warm  without  insincerity,  and  polite  without  pomp — 
neither  chilling  by  his  reserve,  nor  fatiguing  by  his 
loquacity — but  adapting  himself,  without  an  effort,  to 
the  character  of  his  company.  "  He  would  be  pleased 
and  cheerful,"  says  a  correspondent,  "  with  persons 
of  any  class  or  condition,  vicious  and  abandoned  per- 
sons only  excepted;  he  preferred  those  of  character  and 
talents,  but  would  be  amused  with  any  who  could  con- 
tribute to  his  amusement."  He  had  himself,  a  vein  of 
pleasantly,  which  was  extremely  amusing,  without  de- 
tracting from  his  dignity.  His  companions,  although 
perfectly  at  their  ease  with  him,  were  never  known  to 
treat  him  with  degrading  familiarities.  Their  love  and 
their  respect  for  him  equally  forbade  it.  Nor  had  they 
any  dread  of  an  assault  upon  their  feelings;  for  there 
was  nothing  cruel  in  his  wit.  The  tomahawk  and  scalp- 
ing knife- were  no  part  of  his  colloquial  apparatus.  He 
felt  no  pleasure  in  seeing  the  victim  writhe  under  his 
stroke.  The  benignity  of  his  spirit  could  not  have  borne 
such  a  sight,  without  torture.  He  found  himself  hap- 
piest, in  communicating  happiness  to  others.  His  con- 
versation was  instructive  and  delightful;  stately  where  it 
should  be  so,  but  in  the  general,  easy,  familiar,  sprightly, 


LIFE  OP  HENRY.  409 

and  entertaining;  always,  however,  good  humoured,  and 
calculated  to  amuse  without  wounding. 

As  a  specimen  of  this  light  and  good  natured  plea- 
santry, the  following  anecdote  has  been  furnished.  Mr. 
Henry,  together  with  Mr.  Richard  H.  Lee,  and  several 
other  conspicuous  members  of  the  assembly,  were 
invited  to  pass  the  evening  and  night,  at  the  house  of  Mr. 
Edmund  Randolph,  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Richmond. 
Mr.  Lee,  who  was  as  brilliant  and  copious  in  conversa- 
tion as  in  debate,  had  amused  the  company  to  a  veiy  late 
hour,  by  descanting  on  the  genius  of  Cervantes,  particu- 
larly as  exhibited  in  his  chefd'oewvre,  Don  Quixote.  The 
dissertation  had  been  continued  rather  too  long:  the 
company  began  to  yawn,  when  Mr.  Henry,  who  had 
observed  it,  although  Mr.  Lee  had  not,  rose  slowly  from 
his  chair,  and  remarked,  as  he  walked  across  the  room, 
that  Don  Quixote  was  certainly  a  most  excellent  work, 
and  most  skilfully  adapted  to  the  purpose  of  the  author: 
"  but,"  said  he,  "  Mr.  Lee,  (stopping  before  him,  with 
a  most  significant  archness  of  look,)  you  have  over- 
looked, in  your  eulogy,  one  of  the  finest  things  in  the 
book."  "  What  is  that?"  asked  Mr.  Lee.  "  It  is," 
said  Mr.  Henry,  "  that  divine  exclamation  of  Sancho, 
c  blessed  be  the  man  that  first  invented  sleep:  it  covers 
one  all  over,  like  a  cloak.' "  Mr.  Lee  took  the  hint; 
and  the  company  broke  up  in  good  humour. 

His  quick  and  true  discernment  of  characters,  and 
his  prescience  of  political  events,  were  very  much  ad- 
mired. The  following  examples  of  each,  have  been 
furnished  by  Mr.  Pope: 

Mr.  Gallatin  came  to  Virginia  when  a  very  young- 
man :  he  was  obscure  and  unknown,  and  spoke  the 
English  language  so  badly,  that  it  was  with  difficulty  he 
could  be  understood.     He  was  engaged  in  some  agency 


Sr 


410  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

which  made  it  necessary  to  present  a  petition  to  the 
assembly,  and  endeavoured  to  interest  the  leading  mem- 
bers in  its  fate,  by  attempting  to  explain,  out  of  doors, 
its  merits  and  justice.  But  they  could  not  understand 
him  well  enough  to  feel  any  interest  either  for  him  or 
his  petition.  In  this  hopeless  condition  he  waited  on 
Mr.  Henry,  and  soon  felt  that  he  was  in  different 
hands.  Mr.  Henry,  on  his  part,  was  so  delighted  with 
the  interview,  that  he  spoke  of  Mr.  Gallatin  every  where 
in  raptures — "  he  declared  him  without  hesitation  or 
doubt,  to  be  the  most  sensible  and  best  informed  man 
he  had  ever  conversed  with — he  is  to  be  sure/'  said  he, 
"  a  most  astonishing  man!"  The  reader  well  knows 
how  eminently  Mr.  Gallatin  has  since  fulfilled  this  cha- 
racter; and  considering  the  very  disadvantageous  cir- 
cumstances under  which  he  was  seen  by  Mr.  Henry,  it 
is  certainly  a  striking  proof  of  the  superior  sagacity  of 
the  observer. 

In  relation  to  his  political  foresight,  the  following 
anecdote  is  in  Mr.  Pope's  own  words:  "  In  the  year 
1798,  after  Buonaparte  had  annihilated  five  Austrian 
armies,  and  flushed  with  victory,  was  carrying  away 
every  thing  before  him,  I  heard  Mr.  Henry  in  a  public 
company,  observe  (shaking  his  head  after  his  impres- 
sive manner) — It  won't  all  do!  the  present  generation 
in  France  is  so  debased  by  a  long  despotism,  they  pos- 
sess so  few  of  the  virtues  that  constitute  the  life  and 
soul  of  republicanism,  that  they  are  incapable  of  form- 
ing a  correct  and  just  estimate  of  rational  liberty. 
Their  revolution  will  terminate  differently  from  what 
you  expect — their  state  of  anarchy  will  be  succeeded 
by  despotism ;  and  I  should  not  be  surprised,  if  the  very 
man  at  whose  victories  you  now  rejoice,  should  Cassar- 
like,  subvert  the  liberties  of  his  country.     All  who 


LIFE    OF   HENRY.  411 

know  me,"  continued  Mr.  Henry,  "  know  that  I  am  a 
firm  advocate  for  liberty  and  republicanism:  I  believe 
I  have  given  some  evidences  of  this.  I  wish  it  may  not 
be  so,  but  I  am  afraid  the  event  will  justify  this  predic- 
tion." 

The  following  is  the  fullest  description  which  the 
author  has  been  able  to  procure  of  Mr.  Henry's  person. 
He  was  nearly  six  feet  high;  spare,  and  what  may  be 
called  raw-boned,  with  a  slight  stoop  of  the  shoulders — 
his  complexion  was  dark,  sun  burnt,  and  sallow,  without 
any  appearance  of  blood  in  his  cheeks — his  counte- 
nance   grave,    thoughtful,   penetrating,  and   strongly 
marked  with  the  lineaments  of  deep  reflection — the 
earnestness  of  his  manner,  united  with  an  habitual  con- 
traction or  knitting  of  his  brows,  and  those  lines  of 
thought  with  which  his  face  was  profusely  furrowed, 
gave  to  his  countenance  at  some  times,  the  appearance  of 
severity — yet  such  was  the  power  which  he  had  over 
its  expression,  that  he  could  shake  off  from  it  in  an 
instant,  all  the  sternness  of  winter,  and  robe  it  in  the 
brightest  smiles  of  spring.     His  forehead  was  high  and 
straight;  yet  forming  a  sufficient  angle  with  the  lower 
part  of  his  face — his  nose  somewhat  of  the  Roman  stamp, 
though  like  that  which  we  see  in  the  bust  of  Cicero, 
it  was  rather  long,  than  remarkable  for  its  Csesarean 
form — of  the  colour  of  his  eyes,  the  accounts  are  al- 
most as  various  as  those  which  we  have  of  the  colour 
of  the  chamelion — they  are  said  to  have  been  blue, 
grey,  what  Lavater   calls   green,  hazel,  brown,   and 
black — the  fact  seems  to  have  been  that  they  were  of 
a  bluish  grey,  not  large;  and  being  deeply  fixed  in  his 
head,  overhung  by  dark,  long,  and  full  eye-brows,  and 
farther  shaded  by  lashes  that  were  both  long  and  black, 
their  apparent  colour  was  as  variable  as  the  lights  in 


412  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

which  they  were  seen — but  all  concur  in  saying  that 
they  were,  unquestionably  the  finest  feature-  in  his 
lace — brilliant — full  of  spirit,  and  capable  of  the  most 
rapidly  shifting  and  powerful  expression — at  one  ti  me 
piercing  and  terrible  as  those  of  Mars,  and  then  again 
soft  and  tender  as  those  of  pity  herself — his  cheeks 
were  hollow — his  chin  long,  but  well  formed,  and 
rounded  at  the  end,  so  as  to  form  a  proper  counter- 
part to  the  upper  part  of  his  face.  "  I  find  it  difficult," 
says  the  correspondent  from  whom  I  have  borrowed 
this  portrait,  "  to  describe  his  mouth;  in  which  there 
was  nothing  remarkable,  except  when  about  to  express 
a  modest  dissent  from  some  opinion  on  which  he  was 
commenting — he  then  had  a  sort  of  half  smile,  in  which 
the  want  of  conviction  was  perhaps  more  strongly  ex- 
pressed, than  the  satirical  emotion,  which  probably 
prompted  it.  His  manner  and  address  to  the  court  and 
jury  might  be  deemed  the  excess  of  humility,  diffidence, 
and  modesty:  If,  as  rarely  happened,  he  had  occasion 
to  answer  any  remark  from  the  bench,  it  was  impossi- 
ble for  meekness  herself,  to  assume  a  manner  less  pre- 
sumptuous— but  in  the  smile  of  which  I  have  been 
speaking,  you  might  anticipate  the  want  of  conviction, 
expressed  in  his  answer,  at  the  moment  that  he  submitted 
to  the  superior  wisdom  of  the  court,  with  a  grace  that 
would  have  done  honour  to  Westminster  hall.  In  his 
reply  to  counsel,  his  remarks  on  the  evidence,  and  on 
the  conduct  of  the  parties,  he  preserved  the  same  dis- 
tinguished deference  and  politeness,  still  accompanied 
however  by  the  never-failing  index  of  this  sceptical 
smile,  where  the  occasion  prompted/'  In  short,  his 
features  were  manly,  bold,  and  well  proportioned,  full 
of  intelligence,  and  adopting  themselves  intuitively  to 
every  sentiment  of  his  mind,  and  every  feeling  of  his 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  413 

heart.  His  voice  was  not  remarkable  for  its  sweetness; 
but  it  was  firm,  of  full  volume,  and  rather  melodious  than 
otherwise.     Its  charms  consisted  in  the  mellowness  and 
fulness  of  its  note,  the  ease  and  variety  of  its  inflections, 
the  distinctness  of  its  articulation,  the  fine  effect  of  its 
emphasis,  the  felicity  with  which  it  attuned  itself  to 
every  emotion,  and  the  vast  compass  which  enabled  it 
to  range  through  the  whole  empire  of  human  passion, 
from  the  deep  and  tragic  half  whisper  of  horror,  to  the 
wildest  exclamation  of  overwhelming  rage.     In  mild 
persuasion,  it  was  as  soft  and  gentle  as  the  zephyr  of 
spring;  while  in  rousing  his  countrymen  to  arms,  the 
winter  storm  that  roars  along  the  troubled  Baltic,  was 
not  more  awfully  sublime.     It  was  at  all  times  perfectly 
under  his  command;  or  rather,  indeed,  it  seemed  to 
command  itself,  and  to  modulate  its  notes,  most  hap- 
pily to  the  sentiment  he  was  uttering.     It  never  ex- 
ceeded, or  fell  short  of  the  occasion.     There  was  none 
of  that  long  continued   and    deafening  vociferation, 
which  always  takes  place  when  an  ardent  speaker  has 
lost  possession  of  himself — no  monotonous  clangour,  no 
discordant  shriek.     Without  being  strained,  it  had  that 
body  and  enunciation  which  filled  the  most  distant  ear, 
without  distressing  those  which  were  nearest  him :  hence 
it  never  became  cracked  or  hoarse,  even  in  his  longest 
speeches,  but  retained  to  the  last,  all  its  clearness  and 
fulness  of  intonation,  all  the  delicacy  of  its  inflection, 
all  the  charms  of  its  emphasis,  and  enchanting  variety 
of  its  cadence. 

His  delivery  was  perfectly  natural  and  well  timed.  It 
has  indeed  been  said,  that  on  his  first  rising,  there  was 
a  species  of  sub-cantus  very  observable  by  a  stranger, 
and  rather  disagreeable  to  him;  but  that  in  a  very  few 
moments  even  this,  itself,  became  agreeable,  and  seem- 


414  SKETCHES    OF    THE 

ed,  indeed,  indispensable  to  the  full,  effect  of  his  pecu- 
liar diction  and  conceptions.  In  point  of  time,  he  was 
very  happy:  there  was  no  slow  and  heavy  dragging,  no 
quaint  and  measured  drawling,  with  equidistant  pace, 
no  stumbling  and  floundering  among  the  fractured 
members  of  deranged  and  broken  periods,  no  undigni- 
fied hurry  and  trepidation,  no  recalling  and  recasting  of 
sentences  as  he  went  along,  no  retraction  of  one  word 
and  substitution  of  another  not  better,  and  none  of 
those  affected  bursts  of  almost  inarticulate  impetuosity, 
which  betray  the  rhetorician  rather  than  display  the 
orator.  On  the  contrary,  ever  self-collected,  deliberate, 
and  dignified,  he  seemed  to  have  looked  through  the 
whole  period  before  he  commenced  its  delivery;  and 
hence  his  delivery  was  smooth,  and  firm,  and  well 
accented;  slow  enough  to  take  along  with  him  the 
dullest  hearer,  and  yet  so  commanding,  that  the  quick 
had  neither  the  power  nor  the  disposition  to  get  the 
start  of  him.  Thus  he  gave  to  every  thought  its  full 
and  appropriate  force;  and  to  every  image  all  its  ra- 
diance and  beauty. 

No  speaker  ever  understood  better  than  Mr.  Henry, 
the  true  use  and  power  of  the  pause;  and  no  one  ever 
practised  it  with  happier  effect.  His  pauses  were  never 
resorted  to,  for  the  purpose  of  investing  an  insignificant 
thought  with  false  importance;  much  less  were  they 
ever  resorted  to  as  a  finesse,  to  gain  time  for  thinking. 
The  hearer  was  never  disposed  to  ask,  "  why  that 
pause?"  nor  to  measure  its  duration  by  a  reference  to 
his  watch.  On  the  contrary,  it  always  came,  at  the  very 
moment,  when  he  would  himself  have  wished  it,  in 
order  to  weigh  the  striking  and  important  thought  which 
had  just  been  uttered;  and  the  interval  was  always  filled 
by  the  speaker  with  a  matchless  energy  of  look,  which 


LIFE  OP  HENftY.  415 

drove  the  thought  home  through  the  mind  and  through 
the  heart. 

His  gesture,  and  this  varying  play  of  his  features  and 
voice,  were  so  excellent,  so  exquisite,  that  many  have 
referred  his  power  as  an  orator  principally  to  that  cause; 
yet  this  was  all  his  own,  and  his  gesture,  particularly,  of 
so  peculiar  a  cast,  that  it  is  said  it  would  have  become 
no  other  man.  I  do  not  learn  that  it  was  very  abun- 
dant; for  there  was  no  trash  about  it;  none  of  those 
false  motions  to  which  undisciplined  speakers  are  so 
generally  addicted;  no  chopping  nor  sawing  of  the  air; 
no  thumping  of  the  bar  to  express  an  earnestness, 
which  was  much  more  powerfully,  as  well  as  more  ele- 
gantly, expressed  by  his  eye  and  his  countenance. 
Whenever  he  moved  his  arm,  or  his  hand,  or  even  his 
finger,  or  changed  the  position  of  his  body,  it  was  always 
to  some  purpose;  nothing  was  inefficient;  every  thing 
told;  every  gesture,  every  attitude,  every  look,  was  em- 
phatic; all  was  animation,  energy,  and  dignity.  Its 
great  advantage  consisted  in  this — that  various,  bold, 
and  original  as  it  was,  it  never  appeared  to  be 
studied,  affected,  or  theatrical,  or  "  to  overstep,"  in 
the  smallest  degree,  "  the  modesty  of  nature:"  for  he 
never  made  a  gesture,  or  assumed  an  attitude,  which 
did  not  seem  imperiously  demanded  by  the  occasion. 
Every  look,  every  motion,  every  pause,  every  start,  was 
completely  filled  and  dilated  by  the  thought  which  he 
was  uttering,  and  seemed  indeed  to  form  a  part  of  the 
thought  itself.  His  action,  however  strong,  was  never 
vehement.  He  was  never  seen  rushing  forward,  shoul- 
der foremost,  fury  in  his  countenance,  and  frenzy  in  his 
voice,  as  if  to  overturn  the  bar,  and  charge  his  audience 
sword  in  hand.  His  judgment  was  too  manly  and  too 
solid,,  and  his  taste  too  true,  to  permit  him  to  indulge  in 


416  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

any  such  extravagance.  His  good  sense  and  his  self- 
possession  never  deserted  him.  In  the  loudest  storm  of 
declamation,  in  the  fiercest  blaze  of  passion,  there  was 
a  dignity  and  temperance  which  gave  it  seeming.  He 
had  the  rare  faculty  of  imparting  to  his  hearers  all  the 
excess  of  his  own  feelings,  and  all  the  violence  and 
tumult  of  his  emotions,  all  the  dauntless  spirit  of  his 
resolution,  and  all  the  energy  of  his  soul,  without  any 
sacrifice  of  his  own  personal  dignity,  and  without  treat- 
ing his  hearers  otherwise  than  as  rational  beings.  He 
was  not  the  orator  of  a  day;  and  therefore  sought  not 
to  build  his  fame  on  the  sandy  basis  of  a  false  taste, 
fostered,  if  not  created,  by  himself.  He  spoke  for  im- 
mortality; and  therefore  raised  the  pillars  of  his  glory 
on  the  onlv  solid  foundation — the  rock  of  nature. 

So  much  has  been  already  said,  incidentally,  of  his 
attainments,  and  the  character  of  his  mind,  both  as  a 
statesman  and  an  orator,  that  little  remains  to  be  added 
in  a  general  way.  As  a  statesman,  the  quality  which 
strikes  us  most  is  his  political  intrepidity:  and  yet  it  has 
sometimes  been  objected  to  him,  that  he  waited  on 
every  occasion,  to  see  which  way  the  popular  current 
was  setting,  when  he  would  artfully  throw  himself  into 
it,  and  seem  to  guide  its  course.  Nothing  can  be  more 
incorrect:  it  would  be  easy  to  multiply  proofs  to  refute 
the  charge; — but  I  shall  content  myself  with  a  few 
which  are  of  general  notoriety. 

1.  The  American  revolution  is  universally  admitted 
to  have  begun  in  the  upper  circles  of  society.  It  turned 
on  principles  too  remote  and  abstruse  for  vulgar  appre- 
hension or  consideration.  Had  it  depended  on  the  un- 
enlightened mass  of  the  community,  no  doubt  can  be 
entertained  at  this  day,  that  the  tax  imposed  by  parlia- 
ment would  have  been  paid  without  a  question.     Since. 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  417 

then,  the  upper  circle  of  society  did  not  take  its  im- 
pulse from  the  people,  the  only  remaining  inquiiy  is, 
who  gave  the  revolutionary  impulse  to  that  circle  itself? 
It  was  unquestionably,  Patrick  Henry.  This  is  affirm- 
ed by  Mr.  Jefferson;  it  is  demonstrated  by  the  resist- 
ance given  to  Mr.  Hemy's  measures,  by  those  who 
were  afterwards  the  staunchest  friends  of  the  revolu- 
tion; it  is  farther  proved,  by  the  sentiment  before  no- 
ticed, with  which  doctor  Franklin  (who  was  then  con- 
sidered as  the  first  American  statesman)  dismissed  Mr. 
Ingersoll,  on  his  departure  from  London;  a  sentiment, 
which  evinces  beyond  doubt,  that  doctor  Franklin  con- 
sidered resistance  to  the  British  power  to  be,  at  that 
time,  premature;  and  finally,  this  honour  is  assigned  to 
Mr.  Henry,  I  perceive,  by  a  late  interesting  historian  of 
Massachusetts,  the  only  state  which  has  ever  pretended 
to  dispute  the  palm  with  Virginia*  On  this  great  occa- 
sion then,  it  is  manifest,  that  he  did  not  wait  for  the 
popular  current;  but  on  the  contrary  that  it  was  he 
alone,  who  by  his  single  power,  moved  the  mighty  mass 
of  stagnant  waters,  and  changed  the  silent  lake  into  a 


*  The  historian  to  whom  I  allude,  is  Mrs.  Mercy  Warren,  who  is  said  to  be 
the  widow  of  the  celebrated  general  Warren,  the  hero  of  Bunker's  hill. 
These  are  her  words: — "  The  house  of  burgesses  of  Virginia,  was  the  first 
who  formerly  resolved  against  the  encroachments  of  power,  and  the  unwar- 
rantable designs  of  the  British  parliament.  The  novelty  of  their  procedure, 
and  the  boldness  of  spirit  that  marked  the  resolutions  of  that  assembly,  at 
once  astonished  and  disconcerted  the  officers  of  the  crown,  and  the  support- 
ers of  the  measures  of  administration.  These  resolutions  were  ushered  into 
the  house,  on  the  thirtieth  of  May,  one  thousand  seven  hundred  and  sixty-five, 
by  Patrick  Henry,  esq.  a  young  gentleman  of  the  law,  till  then  unknown  in 
political  life.  He  was  a  man  possessed  of  strong  powers,  much  professional 
knowledge,  and  of  such  abilities  as  qualified  him  for  the  exigencies  of  the 
day.  Fearless  of  the  cry  of  treason,  echoed  against  him  from  several  quarters, 
he  justified  the  measure,  and  supported  the  resolves,  in  a  speech  that  did 
honour  both  to  his  understanding  and  his  patriotism,  &c." — Mi's.  W-ahbex's 
Hist,  of  the  American  Revolution,  vol.  i.  p.  28. 

3  G 


418  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

roaring  torrent.  When  it  is  remembered  too,  that  he 
was  then  young  and  obscure,  and  of  course  without  per- 
sonal influence — that  this  step  was  the  result  of  his  own 
solitary  reflection,  and  that  he  was  perfectly  aware  of 
the  personal  danger  which  must  attend  it — we  can  re- 
quire nothing  farther  to  satisfy  us,  that  he  was  a  bold, 
original,  independent  politician,  who  thought  for  him- 
self, and  pursued  the  dictates  of  his  own  judgment, 
wholly  regardless  of  personal  consequences. 

2.  Again,  in  the  spring  of  1775,  that  upper  circle, 
which  still  headed  the  revolution,  were  disposed  to 
acquiesce  in  the  plunder  of  the  magazine,  and  exerted 
their  utmost  efforts  to  allay  the  ferment  which  it  had 
excited.  They  had,  in  fact,  succeeded;  and  the  people 
were  every  where  composed,  save  within  the  immediate 
sphere  of  Mr.  Henry's  influence.  The  reader  has  al- 
ready seen,  that  it  was  he  who  on  that  occasion  excit- 
ed the  people,  not  who  was  excited  by  them ;  that  he  put 
them  into  motion,  and  avowed  to  his  confidential  friends, 
at  the  time,  the  motives  of  policy  by  which  he  was 
actuated;  that  he  placed  himself  at  the  head  of  an  armed 
band,  which  he  had  himself  convened  for  the  purpose: 
and  in  spite  of  the  entreaties  and  supplications  of  the 
patriots  at  Williamsburg,  and  in  defiance  of  the  threats 
of  Dunmore  and  his  myrmidons,  pressed  firmly  and  in- 
trepidly on,  until  the  object  of  his  expedition  was  com- 
pletely obtained. 

3.  So  also  in  the  state  convention,  the  same 
year,  the  old  patriotic  leaders  were  disposed  still 
to  rely  on  the  efficacy  of  petitions,  memorials,  and  re- 
monstrances; it  was  Mr.  Henry  who  proposed,  and  in 
spite  of  their  opposition  (which  was  of  so  strenuous 
and  serious  a  character,  that  one  of  them  in  making  it, 
is  said  to  have  shed  tears  most  profusely)  carried  the 


LIFE    OF   HENRY, 


419 


bold  measure  of  arming  the  militia.  This  was  not  dic- 
tated by  the  people.  The  fact  was,  that  at  that  day, 
the  people  placed  themselves  in  the  hands  of  their  more 
enlightened  friends;  they  never  ventured  to  prescribe 
either  the  time,  the  manner,  or  the  measure  of  resist- 
ance; and  there  can  be  no  room  for  a  candid  doubt 
that,  but  for  the  bold  spirit  and  overpowering  eloquence 
of  Patrick  Henry,  the  people  would  have  followed  the 
pacific  counsels  of  Mr.  Randolph,  Mr.  Nicholas,  Mr. 
Pendleton,  Mr.  Wythe,  and  other  men  of  acknowledged 
talents  and  virtue.  It  was  Mr.  Henry,  therefore,  who 
led  both  the  people  and  their  former  leaders.  The  lat- 
ter, indeed,  came  on  so  reluctantly  at  first,  that  they 
may  be  said  to  have  been  rather  dragged  along,  than 
led;  they  did  come  however,  and  acquiring  warmth  by 
their  motion,  made  ample  amends  thereafter,  for  their 
early  hesitation* 

4.  About  the  close  of  the  war,  again,  when  he  pro- 
posed to  permit  the  return  of  that  obnoxious  class  of 
men,  called  British  refugees  and  Scotch  tories,  did  he 
follow  the  popular  current?  So  far  from  it,  that  he 
stemmed  the  current,  and  turned  back  its  course,  by  the 
power  of  his  resistance. 

*  The  author  has  no  intention,  by  these  remarks,  to  impair  in  the  smallest 
degree,  the  well-earned  reputation  of  those  veteran  statesmen.  They  had 
commenced  the  opposition  to  the  stamp  act,  and  the  other  obnoxious  acts  of 
the  British  parliament,  before  Mr.  Henry  made  his  appearance  as  a  politi- 
cian; they  had  commenced  too,  on  the  same  grounds,  and  would,  probably, 
at  some  later  period,  have  been  wrought  up  by  their  own  principles  and 
feelings,  to  a  forcible  resistance  to  those  measures.  But  the  statements  in  the 
text  are  unquestionably  correct:  they  did  not  approve  of  the  immediate  application 
of  force;  Mr.  Henry's  policy  was  condemned  by  them  as  rash  and  precipitate. 
The  author  is  in  possession  of  an  original  letter  from  one  of  these  statesmen, 
in  which  Mr.  Henry  is  expressly  and  directly  accused  of  having  precipitated 
the  revolution,  against  the  judgment  of  the  older  and  cooler  patriots. 
"  Events,  however,"  as  we  have  seen,  "  favoured  the  bolder  measures  of  Mr. 
Henry,"  and  proved  his  policy  to  be  the  best. 


420  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

5.  So  in  the  case  of  the  federal  constitution,  whither 
did  the  current  of  the  American  people  tend?  Most 
certainly  to  its  adoption;  yet  Mr.  Henry,  to  use  his  own 
language,  "with  manly  firmness,  and.  in  spite  of  an 
erring  world,"  with  the  revered  Washington  too,  at 
their  head,  opposed  its  adoption  with  all  the  powers  of 
his  eloquence. 

The  truth  seems  to  be,  that  this  charge  is  only  a 
variation  of  that  conveyed  by  the  opprobrious  epithets  of 
demagogue  and  factious  tribune,  which  we  have  seen 
that  his  rivals  long  since  sought  to  fasten  upon  him;  and 
there  can  be  little  doubt,  that  it  proceeded  from  the 
writhings  and  contortions  of  the  same  agonized  envy. 
That  a  poor  young  man,  issuing  from  his  native  woods, 
unknown,  unfriended,  and  comparatively  unlettered, 
should  have  been  able,  by  the  mere  force  of  unassisted 
nature,  to  break  to  pieces  the  strong  political  confederacy 
which  then  ruled  the  country,  to  annihilate  all  the  arts 
and  finesse  of  parliamentary  intrigue:  to  eclipse,  by  his 
sagacity,  the  experience  of  age;  and,  by  the  sole  strength 
of  his  native  genius,  to  throw  into  the  shade  all  the  hard 
earned  attainments  of  literature  and  science,  was  entirely 
too  humiliating  to  be  borne  in  silence.  It  was  necessary, 
therefore,  to  resort  to  some  solution  of  this  phenomenon, 
which  should  at  once,  reduce  the  honours  of  this 
plebeian  upstart,  and  soothe  the  wounded  feelings  of 
those,  whose  pride  he  had  brought  down.  Hence  it 
became  fashionable,  in  the  higher  circles,  to  speak  of 
Mr.  Henry  as  a  designing  demagogue,  a  factious 
tribune,  who  carried  his  points,  not  by  fair  and  open 
debate,  but  by  violent  and  inflammatory  appeals  to  the 
worst  passions  of  the  multitude;  and  who  frequently 
gave  himself  the  air  of  leading  the  people,  when  in 
truth,  he  was  merely  following  their  own  blind  lead. 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  421 

This  cant  has  had  its  day,  and  its  propagators.  Truth 
has  set  the  subject  to  rights.  Mr.  Henry  is  alleged,  by 
those  who  had  the  best  opportunities  of  knowing  him, 
to  have  been  not  inferior,  either  in  public  or  in  private 
virtue,  to  any  patriot  of  the  revolution;  and  he  was, 
confessedly  superior  to  them  all,  in  that  combination  of 
bold,  hardy,  adventurous,  splendid,  and  solid  qualifica- 
tions, which  are  so  peculiarly  fitted  to  revolutionary 
times. 

"  He  left,"  says  judge  Winston,  "  no  manuscripts/7 
This  was  to  have  been  expected.  We  have  seen  that 
he  could  not  bear  the  labour  of  writing;  nor,  indeed,  of 
that  long  continued,  coherent,  and  methodical  thinking, 
without  which  no  successful  composition,  of  any  extent, 
can  be  produced.  He  thought,  indeed,  a  great  deal: 
but  his  thinking  was  too  desultory  and  irregular  to  take 
the  form  of  composition.  His  mind  had  never  been 
disciplined  to  wait  upon  his  pen — it  still  moved  on — and 
its  prismatic  beauties  were  as  evanescent  as  they  were 
beautiful.  His  imagination  "  bodied  forth  the  forms  of 
things"  much  more  rapidly,  than  his  unpractised  pen 
could  "  turn  them  to  shapes;"  and  it  is  not  improbable, 
that  his  own  observation  of  the  difference  between  the 
vigour  with  which  he  thought,  and  the  comparative  de- 
crepitude with  which  he  wrote,  disgusted  him  with  his 
first  attempts,  and  prevented  their  repetition. 

Yet  this  habit  which  he  had  of  thinking  for  himself, 
and  looking  directly  at  every  subject,  with  the  natural 
eyes  of  his  understanding,  without  using  what  has  been 
called  the  spectacles  of  books,  was  perhaps  of  advantage 
to  him,  both  as  a  statesman  and  an  orator:  as  a  states- 
man, it  possibly  exempted  him  from  that  common  error 
of  scientific  theorists,  of  forcing  resemblances  between 
the  present  and  some  past  historical  era,  and  accommo- 


422  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

dating  their  measures  to  this  imaginary  identity;  by  his 
mode  of  considering  subjects,  no  circumstance   was 
either  sunk,  or  magnified,  or  distorted,  in  order  to  bend 
the  case  to  a  fanciful  hypothesis;  nor,  in  deciding  what 
was  proper  to  be  done  in  America,  did  he  look  to  see 
what  had  been  found  expedient  at  Athens,  or  Rome. 
On  the  contrary,  knowing  well  the  people  with  whom 
he  had  to  deal,  of  what  they  were  capable,  and  what 
was  necessary  to  their  happiness,  how  much  they  could 
bear,  and  how  much  achieve,  and  looking  immediately 
at  the  subject,  (whatever  it  might  be,)  with  that  piercing 
vision,  that  solid  judgment  and  ready  resource,  which 
characterized  his  mind — he  seemed  to  seize,  in  every 
case,  rather    "  luckily  than  laboriously/'   the  course 
which  of  all  others  was  surest  of  success.  In  short,  this 
habit  made  him  an  original,  sound,  and  practical  states- 
man, instead  of  being  a  learned,  dreaming,  and  visionary 
theorist.     Not  that  Mr.  Henry  was  deficient  in  histori- 
cal knowledge;  he  had  enough  of  it,  for  all  the  useful 
purposes  either  of  analogy  or  illustration;  but  he  never 
permitted  it  to  intercept  his  proper  view  of  a  subject, 
or  to  take  the  lead  in  suggesting  what  was  fit  to  be 
done.     This  he  chose  rather  to  derive  from  the  nature 
of  the  case  itself,  and  the   character   of  the  people 
among  whom  that  case  occurred. 

This  habit  of  relying  more  on  his  own  meditations 
than  on  books,  was  also,  perhaps,  of  service  to  him  as 
an  orator:  for  by  this  course,  he  avoided  the  beaten 
paths  and  roads  of  thought;  and  instead  of  exhibiting  in 
his  speeches  old  ideas  newly  vamped  up,  and  ancient 
beauties  tricked  off  in  modern  tinsel,  his  arguments, 
sentiments,  and  figures,  had  all  that  freshness  and  no- 
velty which  are  so  universally  captivating. 

In  what  did  his  peculiar  excellence  as  an  orator  con- 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  423 

sist?  in  what  consisted  that  unrivalled  power  of  speak- 
ing, which  all  who  ever  heard  him  admit  him  to  have 
possessed?  The  reader  is  already  apprized,  that  the 
author  of  these  sketches  never  had  the  advantage  of 
hearing  Mr.  Henry,  and  that  no  entire  speech  of  his 
was  ever  extant,  either  in  print  or  writing:  hence,  there 
are  no  materials  for  minute  and  exact  analysis.  The 
inquiry,  however,  is  natural,  and  has  been  directed, 
without  success,  to  many  of  the  most  discriminating  of 
Mr.  Henry's  admirers.  Their  answers  are  as  various 
as  the  complexion  of  their  own  characters;  each  pre- 
ferring that  property  from  which  he  had  himself  derived 
the  most  enjoyment.  Some  ascribe  his  excellence 
wholly  to  his  manner;  others,  in  great  part,  to  the  ori- 
ginality and  soundness  of  his  matter.  And  among  the 
admirers,  in  both  classes,  there  are  not  two  who  con- 
cur in  assigning  the  pre-eminence  to  the  same  quality. 
Of  his  matter,  one  will  admire  the  plainness  and  strength 
of  his  reasoning;  another,  the  concentrated  spirit  of  his 
aphorisms;  a  third,  his  wit;  a  fourth,  his  pathos;  a  fifth, 
the  intrinsic  beauty  of  his  imagination:  so  in  regard  to 
his  manner,  one  will  place  his  excellence  in  his  articu- 
lation and  emphasis;  a  second,  in  the  magic  power  with 
which  he  infused  the  tones  of  his  voice  into  the  nerves 
of  his  hearers,  and  rivetted  their  attention.  The  truth, 
therefore,  probably  is,  that  it  was  not  in  any  single 
charm,  either  of  matter  or  manner,  that  we  are  to  look 
for  the  secret  of  his  power;  but  that,  like  Pope's  defini- 
tion of  beauty,  it  was  "  the  joint  force  and  full  result  of 
all." 

If,  however,  we  are  to  consider  as  really  and  entirely 
his,  those  speeches  which  have  been  already  given  in 
his  name  to  the  public,  or  are  now  prepared  for  them, 
there  can  be  no  difficulty  in  deciding,  that  his  power 


424  SKETCHES  OF  THE 

must  have  consisted  principally  in  his  delivery.  We 
know  what  extraordinary  effects  have  been  produced 
by  the  mere  manner  of  an  orator,  without  any  uncom- 
mon weight  or  worth  of  matter.*  We  have  the  autho- 
rity, however,  of  those  who  heard  the  identical  speeches 
now  professed  to  be  given  as  his,  for  declaring,  that  they 
are  an  extremely  imperfect  representation  of  them ;  and 
their  ability  to  correct  them  so  frequently  from  memory, 
establishes  the  fact,  that  it  was  not  the  charm  of  delivery 
merely,  which  constituted  the  difference  between  the 
report  and  the  original.  This  is  not  the  only  instance, 
in  which  a  great  orator  has  been  injured,  by  imperfect 
attempts  to  represent  him:  for  (to  say  nothing  of  those 
modern  proofs,  which  will  easily  occur  to  the  reader)  we 
are  told,  that  the  great  Pericles  himself  met  with  a  si- 
milar fate.f  Candour  and  justice,  however,  require  us 
to  repeat,  that  Mr.  Robertson's  reports  are  unquestion- 
able, in  point  of  good  faith;  and  that  they  are  highly 
valuable,  on  account  of  the  accuracy  and  fidelity  with 
which  they  are  believed  to  have  preserved  the  substance 
of  the  debates.  It  is  with  extreme  regret  that  the  au- 
thor has  made  a  single  comment  to  their  disadvantage ; 
but  justice  to  Mr.  Henry  has  made  it  indispensable. 


*  Friar  Narni,  a  capuchin,  was  so  remarkable  for' his  eloquence,  that  his 
hearers,  after  a  sermon,  cried  out  mercy,  in  the  streets,  as  he  passed  home  ; 
and  thirty  bishops,  starting  up  under  a  discourse,  hurried  home  to  their  re- 
spective dioceses:  yet  when  his  sermons  came  to  be  published,  they  were 
thought  to  be  unworthy  of  his  reputation^  which  shows  how  much  depends 
on  action ;  and  how  correct  the  saying  of  Demosthenes  was,  on  that  sub- 
ject."    Bayle.  Article  Narni. 

f  "Some  harangues  of  Pericles  were  still  extant  in  Quintilian's  time: 
but  that  learned  rhetorician,  finding  them  disproportioned  to  the  high  repu- 
tation of  this  great  man,  approved  the  opinion  of  those  who  looked  upon 
them  as  a  supposititious  work.  An  indifferent  harangue,  however,  being  re- 
cited by  an  excellent  orator,  may  charm  the  hearers.  Action  is  almost  all." — 
Bayle.  Article  Pericles. 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  425 

The  basis  of  Mr.  Henry's  intellectual  character  was 
strong  natural  sense.  His  knowledge  of  human  nature 
was  as  we  have  seen,  consummate.  His  wisdom  was 
that  of  observation,  rather  than  of  reading.  His  fancy, 
although  sufficiently  pregnant  to  furnish  supplies  for 
the  occasion,  was  not  so  exuberant  as  to  oppress  him 
with  its  productions.  He  was  never  guilty  of  the  fault, 
with  which  Corinna  is  said  to  have  reproached  her  rival 
Pindar,  of  pouring  his  vase  of  flowers,  all  at  once  upon 
the  ground;  on  the  contrary,  their  beauty  and  their 
excellence,  were  fully  observed,  from  their  rarity, 
and  the  happiness  with  which  they  were  distributed 
through  his  speeches.  His  feelings  were  strong,  yet 
completely  under  his  command;  they  rose  up  to  the  oc- 
casion, but  were  never  suffered  to  overflow  it;  his  lan- 
guage was  often  careless,  sometimes  incorrect;  yet  upon 
the  whole  it  was  pure  and  perspicuous,  giving  out  his 
thoughts  in  full  and  clear  proportion;  free  from  affec- 
tation, and  frequently  beautiful;  strong  without  effort, 
and  adapted  to  the  occasion;  nervous  in  argument, 
burning  in  passion,  and  capable  of  matching  the  loftiest 
flights  of  his  genius. 

It  may  perhaps  assist  the  reader's  conception  of  Mr. 
Henry's  peculiar  cast  of  eloquence,  to  state  the  points 
in  which  he  differed  from  other  orators.  Those  which 
distinguished  him  from  Mr.  Lee  have  been  already  ex- 
hibited. Colonel  Innis'  manner  was  also  very  different. 
His  habitual  indolence  followed  him  into  debate;  he 
generally  contented  himself  with  a  single  view  of  his 
subject;  but  that  was  given  with  irresistible  power. 
His  eloquence  was  indeed,  a  mighty  and  a  roaring  torrent; 
it  had  not  however,  that  property  of  Horace's  stream 
labitur  et  labetur,  in  omne  volubilis  mvum — on  the  con- 
trary, it  commonly  ran  by,  in  half  an  hour.  But  it  bore 

3h 


426  SKETCHES    OF   THE 

a  striking  resemblance  to  the  eloquence  of  lord  Chat- 
ham ;  it  was  a  short,  but  bold  and  most  terrible  assault — 
a  vehement,  impetuous,  and  overwhelming  burst — a 
magnificent  meteor,  which  shot  majestically  across  the 
heavens,  from  pole  to  pole,  and  straight  expired  in  a 
glorious  blaze. 

Mr.  Henry,  on  the  contrary,  however  indolent  in  his 
general  life,  was  never  so  in  debate,  where  the  occasion 
called  for  exertion.  He  rose  against  the  pressure,  with 
the  most  unconquerable  perseverance.  He  held  his 
subject  up  in  every  light  in  which  it  could  be  placed; 
yet,  always  with  so  much  power,  and  so  much  beauty, 
as  never  to  weary  his  audience,  but  on  the  contraiy  to 
delight  them.  He  had  more  art  than  colonel  Innis:  he 
appealed  to  every  motive  of  interest — urged  every  argu- 
ment that  could  convince — pressed  every  theme  of  per- 
suasion— awakened  every  feeling,  and  roused  every 
passion  to  his  aid.  He  had  more  variety  too,  in  his 
manner:  sometimes  he  was  very  little  above  the  tone  of 
conversation;  at  others,  in  the  highest  strain  of  epic 
sublimity.  His  course  was  of  longer  continuance — his 
flights  better  sustained,  and  more  diversified,  both  in 
their  direction  and  velocity.  He  rose  like  the  thunder- 
bearer  of  Jove,  when  he  mounts  on  strong  and  untiring 
wing,  to  sport  in  fearless  majesty  over  the  troubled 
deep — now  sweeping  in  immense  and  rapid  circles — 
then  suddenly  arresting  his  grand  career,  and  hovering 
aloft  in  tremulous  and  terrible  suspense — at  one  instant, 
plunged  amid  the  foaming  waves — at  the  next,  re-ascend- 
ing on  high,  to  play  undaunted  among  the  lightnings  of 
heaven,  or  soar  towards  the  sun. 

He  differed  too,  from  those  orators  of  Great  Britain, 
with  whom  we  have  become  acquainted  by  their  printed 
speeches.  He  had  not  the  close  method,  and  high  polish 


LIFE  OF  HENRY.  427 

of  those  of  England:  nor  the  exuberant  imagery  which 
distinguishes  those  of  Ireland.  On  the  contrary,  he 
was  loose,  irregular,  desultory — sometimes  rough  and 
abrupt — careless  in  connecting  the  parts  of  his  dis- 
course, but  grasping  whatever  he  touched,  with  gigantic 
strength.  In  short,  he  was  the  Orator  of  Nature:  and 
such  a  one  as  nature  might  not  blush  to  avow. 

If  the  reader  shall  still  demand  how  he  acquired  those 
wonderful  powers  of  speaking,  which  have  been  as- 
signed to  him,  we  can  only  answer,  with  Gray,  that  they 
were  the  gift  of  heaven — the  birthright  of  genius. 

"  Thine  too,  these  keys,  immortal  boy! 

This  can  unlock  the  gates  of  joy  ; 

Of  horror,  that,  and  thrilling  fears, 

Or  ope  the  sacred  source  of  sympathetic  tears." 

It  has  been  said  of  Mr.  Henry,*  with  inimitable  felicity, 
that  "  he  was  Shakspeare  and  Garrick  combined!" 
Let  the  reader  then,  imagine  the  wonderful  talents  of 
those  two  men  united  in  the  same  individual,  and  trans- 
ferred from  scenes  of  fiction,  to  the  business  of  real  life, 
and  he  will  have  formed  a  just  conception  of  the 
powers  of  Patrick  Henry.  In  a  word,  he  was  one  of 
those  perfect  prodigies  of  nature,  of  whom  very  few 
have  been  produced  since  the  foundations  of  the  earth 
were  laid;  and  of  him,  may  it  be  said,  as  truly  as  of  any 
one  that  ever  existed, 

"  He  was  a  man,  take  him  for  all  in  alh 

We  ne'er  shall  look  upon  his  like,  again." 

*  By  Mr.  John  Randolph,  of  Roanoke. 
THE    END. 


APPENDIX. 


Note  A. 

IT  appears  by  the  Journal  of  the  House  of  Burgesses,  of  the  14th  Novem- 
ber 1764,  (page  38),  that  a  committee  was  appointed  to  draw  up  the  follow- 
ing address, memorial  and  remonstrance  ;  which  committee  was  composed  of 
the  following  persons,  to  wit :  Mr.  Attorney  (Peyton  Randolph),  Mr.  Richard 
Henry  Lee,  Mr.  Landon  Carter,  Mr.  Wythe,  Mr.  Edmund  Pendleton,  Mr. 
Benjamin  Harrison,  Mr.  Cary  and  Mr.  Fleming :  to  whom,  afterward,  Mr.  Bland 
was  added.     The  address  to  the  King  is  from  the  pen  of  the  Attorney.* 

"  To  the  King's  Most  Excellent  Majesty. 


"  We,  your  Majesty's  dutiful  and  loyal  subjects,  the  Council  and  Burgesses 
of  your  ancient  colony  and  dominion  of  Virginia,  now  met  in  general  assem- 
bly, begleave  to  assure  your  Majesty  of  our  firm  and  inviolable  attachment  to 
your  sacred  person  and  government ;  and  as  yourfaithful  subjects,  here,  have 
at  all  times  been  zealous  to  demonstrate  this  truth,  by  a  ready  compliance 
with  the  royal  requisitions  during  the  late  war,  by  which  a  heavy  and  oppres- 
sive debt  of  near  half  a  million  hath  been  incurred,  so  at  this  time  they  im- 
plore permission  to  approach  the  throne  with  humble  confidence,  and  to  en- 
treat that  your  Majesty  will  be  graciously  pleased  to  protect  your  people  of 
this  colony  in  the  enjoyment  of  their  ancient  and  inestimable  right  of  being 
governed  by  such  laws,  respecting  their  internal  polity  and  taxation,  as  are 
derived  from  their  own  consent,  with  the  approbation  of  their  Sovereign  or 
his  substitute  :  a  right  which,  as  men  and  descendants  of  Britons,  they  have 
ever  quietly  possessed,  since,  first,  by  royal  permission  and  encouragement, 
they  left  the  mother  kingdom  to  extend  its  commerce  and  dominion. 

"  Your  Majesty's  dutiful  subjects  of  Virginia  most  humbly  and  unanimously 
hope,  that  this  invaluable  birthright,  descended  to  them  from  their  ancestors, 
and  in  which  they  have  been  protected  by  your  royal  predecessors,  will  not 
be  suffered  to  receive  an  injury,  under  the  reign  of  your  sacred  Majesty,  al- 
ready so  illustriously  distinguished  by  your  gracious  attention  to  the  liberties 
of  the  people. 

"  That  your  Majesty  may  long  five  to  make  nations  happy,  is  the  ardent 
prayer  of  yourfaithful  subjects,  the  Council  and  Burgesses  of  Virginia." 

*  On  ihe  authority  of  Mr.  Jefferson . 

1  * 


ii  APPENDIX. 

The  author  cannot  learn  who  drew  the  following  memorial ;  but  from  the 
style  of  the  composition,  compared  with  the  members  of  the  committee  and 
the  distribution  of  its  other  labours,  he  thinks  it  probable  that  it  was  Mr.  Pen- 
dleton ;  possibly,  Mr.  Bland. 

"To  the  Right  Honourable  the  Lords  Spiritual  and  Temporal,  in  Parliament 

assembled : " 
"  Tlie  Memorial  of  the  Council  and  Burgesses  of  Virginia,  now  met  in  General 

Assembly, 

"  HUMBLY  REPRESENTS, 

"  That  your  memorialists  hope  an  application  to  your  lordships,  the  fixed 
and  hereditary  guardians  of  British  liberty,  will  not  be  thought  improper  at 
this  time,  when  measures  are  proposed,  subversive  as  they  conceive,  of  that 
freedom,  which  all  men,  especially  those  who  derive  their  constitution  from 
Britain,  have  a  right  to  enjoy  ;  and  they  flatter  themselves  that  your  lord- 
ships will  not  look  upon  them  as  objects  so  unworthy  your  attention,  as  to  re- 
gard any  impropriety  in  the  form  or  manner  of  their  application,  for  your 
lordships'  protection,  of  their  just  and  undoubted  rights  as  Britons. 

"  It  cannot  be  presumption  in  your  memorialists  to  call  themselves  by  this 
distinguished  name,  since  they  are  descended  from  Britons,  who  left  their  na- 
tive country  to  extend  its  territory  and  dominion,  and  who,  happily  for  Britain, 
and  as  your  memorialists  once  thought,  for  themselves  too,  effected  this  pur- 
pose. As  our  ancestors  brought  with  them  every  right  and  privilege  they 
coidd  with  justice  claim  in  their  mother  kingdom,  their  descendants  may  con- 
clude, they  cannot  be  deprived  of  those  rights  without  injustice. 

"Your  memoi'ialists  conceive  it  to  be  a  fundamental  principle  of  the  British 
constitution,  without  which  freedom  can  no  where  exist,  that  the  people  are 
not  subject  to  any  taxes  but  such  as  are  laid  on  them  by  their  own  consent, 
or  by  those  who  are  legally  appointed  to  represent  them  :  property  must  be- 
come too  precarious  for  the  genius  of  a  free  people,  which  can  be  taken  from 
them  at  the  will  of  others,  who  cannot  know  what  taxes  such  people  can  bear, 
or  the  easiest  mode  of  raising  them ;  and  who  are  not  under  that  restraint, 
which  is  the  greatest  security  against  a  burthensome  taxation,  when  the  re- 
presentatives themselves  must  be  affected  by  every  tax  imposed  on  the 
people. 

"  Your  memorialists  are  therefore  led  into  an  humble  confidence,  that  your 
lordships  will  not  think  any  reason  sufficient  to  support  such  a  power,  in  the 
British  parliament,  where  the  colonies  cannot  be  represented :  a  power  ne- 
ver before  constitutionally  assumed,  and  which  if  they  have  a  right  to  exer- 
cise on  any  occasion,  must  necessarily  establish  this  melancholy  truth,  that 
the  inhabitants  of  the  colonies  are  the  slaves  of  Britons  from  whom  they  are 
descended ;  and  from  whom  they  might  expect  every  indulgence  that  the  ob- 
ligations of  interest  and  affection  can  entitle  them  to. 

"Your  memorialists  have  been  invested  with  the  right  of  taxing  their  own 
people  from  the  first  establishment  of  a  regular  government  in  the  colony, 
and  requisitions  have  been  constantly  made  to  them  by  their  sovereigns,  on 
all  occasions  when  the  assistance  of  the  colony  was  thought  necessary  to  pre- 


APPENDIX.  iii 

serve  the  British  interest  in  America  ,•  from  whence  they  must  conclude,  they 
cannot  now  be  deprived  of  a  right  they  have  so  long  enjoyed,  and  which  they 
have  never  forfeited. 

"  The  expenses  incurred  during  the  last  war,  in  compliance  with  the  de- 
mands on  this  colony  by  our  late  and  present  most  gracious  sovereigns,  have 
involved  us  in  a  debt  of  near  half  a  million,  a  debt  not  likely  to  decrease  un- 
der the  continued  expense  we  are  at,  in  providing  for  the  security  of  the  peo- 
ple against  the  incursions  of  our  savage  neighbours  ;  at  a  time  when  the  low 
state  of  our  staple  commodity,  the  total  want  of  specie,  and  the  late  restric- 
tions upon  the  trade  of  the  colonies,  render  the  circumstances  of  the  people 
extremely  distressful ;  and  which,  if  taxes  are  accumulated  upon  them,  by  the 
British  parliament,  will  make  them  truly  deplorable. 

"  Your  memorialists  cannot  suggest  to  themselves  any  reason  why  they 
should  not  still  be  trusted  with  the  property  of  their  people,  with  whose  abi- 
lities, and  the  least  burthensome  mode  of  taxing,  (with  great  deference  to 
the  superior  wisdom  of  parliament,)  they  must  be  best  acquainted. 

"  Your  memorialists  hope  they  shall  not  be  suspected  of  being  actuated  on 
this  occasion,  by  any  principles  but  those  of  the  purest  loyalty  and  affection,  as 
they  always  endeavoured  by  their  conduct  to  demonstrate,  that  they  consi- 
der their  connexion  with  Great  Britain,  the  seat  of  liberty,  as  their  greatest 
happiness. 

"The  duty  they  owe  to  themselves  and  their  posterity,  lays  your  memo- 
rialists  under  the  necessity  of  endeavouring  to  establish  their  constitution, 
upon  its  proper  foundation  ;  and  they  do  most  humbly  pray  your  lordships  to 
take  this  subject  into  your  consideration,  with  the  attention  that  is  due  to  the 
well-being  of  the  colonies,  on  which  the  prosperity  of  Great  Britain  does,  in 
a  great  measure,  depend." 

Mr.  Wythe  was  the  author  of  the  following  remonstrance.  "  It  was  done 
"  with  so  much  freedom  that,  as  he  told  me,  himself,  his  colleagues  of  the 
"  committee  shrank  from  it  as  wearing  the  aspect  of  treason,  and  smoothed 
"  its  features  to  its  present  form."* 

"  To  the  Honourable  the  Knights,  Citizens,  and  Burgesses  of  Great  Britain, 

in  Parliament  assembled : 
"  The  Remonstrance  of  the  Council  and  Burgesses  of  Virginia. 
"  It  appearing,  by  the  printed  votes  of  the  house  of  commons  of  Great  Bri- 
tain in  parliament  assembled,  that  in  a  committee  of  the  whole  house,  the 
17th  day  of  March  last,  it  was  resolved,  that  towards  defending,  protecting, 
and  securing  the  British  colonies  and  plantations  in  America,  it  may  be  proper 
to  charge  certain  stamp  duties  in  the  said  colonies  and  plantations ;  and  it 
being  apprehended  that  the  same  subject,  which  was  then  declined,  may  be 
resumed  and  further  pursued  in  a  succeeding  session,  the  council  and  bur- 
gesses of  Virginia,  met  in  general  assembly,  judge  it  their  indispensable  duty, 
in  a  respectful  manner,  but  with  decent  firmness,  to  remonstrate  against  such 

*  Mr.  Jefferson. 


iv  APPENDIX. 

a  measure  ;  that  at  least  a  cession  of  those  rights,  which  in  their  opinion  must 
be  infringed  by  that  procedure,  may  not  be  inferred  from  their  silence,  at  so 
important  a  crisis. 

"  They  conceive  it  is  essential  to  British  liberty,  that  laws,  imposing  taxes 
on  the  people,  ought  not  to  be  made  without  the  consent  of  representatives 
chosen  by  themselves ;  who,  at  the  same  time  that  they  are  acquainted  with 
the  circumstances  of  their  constituents,  sustain  a  portion  of  the  burthen  laid 
on  them.  The  privileges,  inherent  in  the  persons  who  discovered  and  settled 
these  regions,  could  not  be  renounced  or  forfeited  by  their  removal  hither, 
not  as  vagabonds  or  fugitives,  but  licensed  and  encouraged  by  their  prince, 
and  animated  with  a  laudable  desire  of  enlarging  the  British  dominion,  and 
extending  its  commerce  :  on  the  contrary,  it  was  secured  to  them  and  their 
descendants,  with  all  other  rights  and  immunities  of  British  subjects,  by  a 
royal  charter,  which  hath  been  invariably  recognised  and  confirmed  by  his 
Majesty  and  his  predecessors,  in  their  commissions  to  the  several  governors, 
granting  a  power,  and  prescribing  a  form  of  legislation  ;  according  to  which, 
laws  for  the  administration  of  justice,  and  for  the  welfare  and  good  govern- 
ment of  the  colony,  have  been  hitherto  enacted  by  the  governor,  council,  and 
general  assembly ;  and  to  them,  requisitions  and  applications  for  supplies  have 
been  directed  by  the  crown.  As  an  instance  of  the  opinion  which  former 
sovereigns  entertained  of  these  rights  and  privileges,  we  beg  leave  to  refer 
to  three  acts  of  the  general  assembly,  passed  in  the  32d  year  of  the  reign  of 
king  Charles  II.  (one  of  which  is  entitled  'An  act  for  raising  a  public  revalue 
for  the  belter  support  of  the  government  of  his  Majesty's  colony  of  Virginia,'  im- 
posing several  duties  for  that  purpose),  which  being  thought  absolutely  ne- 
cessary, were  prepared  in  England,  and  sent  over  by  their  then  governour, 
the  lord  Culpeper,  to  be  passed  by  the  general  assembly,  with  a  full  power  to 
give  the  royal  assent  thereto  ;  and  which  were  accordingly  passed,  after  seve- 
ral amendments  were  made  to  them  here  :  thus  tender  was  his  Majesty  of  the 
rights  of  his  American  subjects ;  and  the  remonstrants  do  not  discern  by  what 
distinction  they  can  be  deprived  of  that  sacred  birthright  and  most  valuable 
inheritance  by  their  fellow  subjects,  nor  with  what  propriety  they  can  be 
taxed  or  affected  in  their  estates,  by  the  parliament,  wherein  they  are  not, 
and  indeed  cannot,  constitutionally,  be  represented. 

"And  if  it  were  proper  for  the  parliament  to  impose  taxes  on  the  colonies 
at  all,  which  the  remonstrants  take  leave  to  think  would  be  inconsistent  with 
the  fundamental  principles  of  the  constitution,  the  exercise  of  that  power,  at 
this  time,  would  be  ruinous  to  Virginia,  who  exerted  herself  in  the  late  war, 
it  is  feared  beyond  her  strength,  insomuch  that  to  redeem  the  money  granted 
for  that  exigence,  her  people  are  taxed  for  several  years  to  come  :  this,  with 
the  larger  expenses  incurred  for  defending  the  frontiers  against  the  restless 
Indians,  who  have  infested  her  as  much  since  the  peace  as  before,  is  so  griev- 
ous, that  an  increase  of  the  burthen  would  be  intolerable  :  especially  as  the 
people  are  very  greatly  distressed  already  from  the  scarcity  of  circulating 
cash  amongst  them,  and  from  the  little  value  of  their  staple  at  the  British 
markets. 

"  And  it  is  presumed,  that  adding  to  that  load  which  the  colony  now  labours 


APPENDIX.  v 

under,  will  not  be  more  oppressive  to  her  people  than  destructive  of  the  in- 
terest of  Great  Britain  :  for  the  plantation  trade,  confined  as  it  is  to  the  mo- 
ther country,  hath  been  a  principal  means  of  multiplying  and  enriching  her 
inhabitants ;  and,  if  not  too  much  discouraged,  may  prove  an  inexhaustible 
source  of  treasure  to  the  nation.  For  satisfaction  in  this  point,  let  the  pre- 
sent state  of  the  British  fleets  and  trade  be  compared  with  what  they  were 
before  the  settlement  of  the  colonies ;  and  let  it  be  considered,  that  whilst 
property  in  land  may  be  acquired  on  very  easy  terms,  in  the  vast  uncultivated 
territory  of  North  America,  the  colonists  will  be  mostly,  if  not  wholly,  employ- 
ed in  agriculture  ;  whereby  the  exportation  of  their  commodities  to  Great 
Britain,  and  the  consumption  of  manufactures  supplied  from  thence,  will 
be  daily  increasing.  But  this  most  desirable  connexion  between  Great  Bri- 
tain and  her  colonies,  supported  by  such  a  happy  intercourse  of  reciprocal 
benefits  as  is  continually  advancing  the  prosperity  of  both,  must  be  interrupt- 
ed, if  the  people  of  the  latter,  reduced  to  extreme  poverty,  should  be  com- 
pelled to  manufacture  those  articles  they  have  been  hitherto  furnished  with, 
from  the  former. 

"  From  these  considerations,  it  is  hoped  that  the  honourable  house  of  com- 
mons will  not  prosecute  a  measure  which  those  who  may  suffer  under  it,  can- 
not but  look  upon  as  fitter  for  exiles  driven  from  their  native  country,  after 
ignominiously  forfeiting  her  favours  and  protection,  than  for  the  posterity  of 
Britons,  who  have  at  all  times  been  forward  to  demonstrate  all  due  reverence 
to  the  mother  kingdom ;  and  are  so  instrumental  in  promoting  her  glory  and 
felicity ;  and  that  British  patriots  will  never  consent  to  the  exercise  of  any  an- 
ticonstitutional  power,  which,  even  in  this  remote  corner,  may  be  dangerous 
in  its  example  to  the  interiour  parts  of  the  British  empire,  and  will  certainly 
be  detrimental  to  its  commerce." 


Note  B. 

Council  Chamber,  October  17th,  1785. 

Sir — Since  the  last  session  of  assembly,  I  have  received  sundry  acts,  reso- 
lutions, and  other  communications  from  congress,  whicli  I  transmit  to  the  ge- 
neral assembly,  marked  No.  1,  and  which  will  claim  the  attention  of  the  legis- 
lature, according  to  their  nature  and  importance,  respectively. 

The  execution  of  the  militia  law  hath  caused  much  embarrassment  to  the 
executive.  Compelled  to  name  all  the  field  officers  throughout  the  state,  and 
possessing  sufficient  information  as  to  the  fitness  of  individuals  for  these  of- 
fices in  a  few  counties  only,  they  were  constrained  to  search  out  proper  per- 
sons, by  such  means  as  accident  furnished,  and  by  letters  addressed  to  the  se- 
veral counties.  In  some  instances,  the  gentlemen  to  whom  they  were  address- 
ed, refused  to  give  any  information.  In  many  others,  the  answers  came  too 
late  to  avail ;  the  law  directing  the  commissions  to  issue  the  1st  of  April.  In 
this  situation,  the  business  has  been  conducted :  and  from  a  partial  knowledge 
of  characters  in  some  counties,  and  a  total  ignorance  of  them  in  others,  I  am 


vi  APPENDIX. 

sensible  many  who  are  worthy  of  command  have  been  passed  by,  and  others 
less  fit  for  office,  may  have  been  commissioned.  And  notwithstanding  a  close 
attention  has  been  given  to  this  business,  many  of  the  counties  have  not  yet 
been  officered,  for  want  of  the  recommendations  of  captains  and  subalterns. 

Finding  that  the  arms  and  ammunition  directed  to  be  purchased,  could  not 
be  procured  except  from  beyond  the  sea,  application  has  been  made  by  me  to 
Mr.  Jefferson  and  the  Marquis  de  la  Fayette,  requesting  their  assistance  to 
Mr.  Barclay  (who  was  commissioned  to  m&ke  the  purchase),  in  accomplishing 
this  important  work ;  and  I  have  the  satisfaction  to  find,  that  the  affair  is  in 
such  a  train  as  to  promise  the  speedy  arrival  of  these  much  wanted  articles. 
Formore  full  information  respecting  this  transaction,  I  send  you  sundry  letters 
(No.  2,)  by  one  of  which  you  will  see  that  our  noble  friend  the  Marquis,  offers 
us  his  services,  if  there  shall  be  occasion  for  them. 

I  transmit,  herewith,  a  letter  from  tine  honourable  Mr.  Hardy,  covering  a 
memorial  to  congress  from  sundry  inhabitants  of  Washington  county,  praying 
the  establishment  of  an  independent  state,  to  be  bounded  as  is  therein  ex- 
pressed. The  proposed  limits  include  a  vast  extent  of  country  in  which  we 
have  numerous  and  very  respectable  settlements ;  which,  in  their  growth,  will 
form  an  invaluable  barrier  between  this  countiy  and  those  who,  in  the  course 
of  events,  may  occupy  the  vast  plains  westward  of  the  mountains,  some  of 
whom  may  have  views  incompatible  with  our  safety.  Already  the  militia  of 
that  part  of  the  state,  is  among  the  most  respectable  we  have  ;  and  by  these 
means  it  is,  that  the  neighbouring  Indians  are  awed  into  pi'ofessions  of  friend- 
ship. But  a  circumstance  has  lately  happened,  which  renders  the  possession 
of  that  territory,  at  the  present  time,  indispensable  to  the  peace  and  safety  of 
Virginia:  I  mean  the  assumption  of  sovereign  power  by  the  western  inhabi- 
tants of  North  Carolina.  If  these  people,  who,  without  consulting  their  own 
safety  or  any  other  authority  known  in  the  American  constitution,  have  as- 
sumed government,  and  while  unallied  to  us,  and  under  no  engagements  to 
pursue  the  objects  of  the  federal  government,  they  shall  be  strengthened  by 
the  accession  of  so  great  a  part  of  our  country,  consequences  fatal  to  our  re- 
pose will  probably  follow.  It  is  to  be  observed,  that  the  settlements  of  this 
new  society,  stretch  on  to  great  extent  in  contact  with  ours,  in  Washington 
county,  and  thereby  expose  our  citizens  to  the  contagion  of  that  example, 
which  bids  fair  to  destroy  the  peace  of  North  Carolina. 

In  this  state  of  things  it  is,  that  variety  of  informations  have  come  to  me, 
stating  that  several  persons,  but  especially  col.  Arthur  Campble,  have  used 
their  utmost  endeavours,  and  with  some  success,  to  persuade  the  citizens  in 
that  quarter  to  break  off  from  this  commonwealth,  and  attach  themselves  to 
the  newly  assumed  government,  or  erect  one,  distinct  from  it.  And  in  order 
to  effect  this  pmpose,  the  equity  and  authority  of  the  laws  have  been  ar- 
raigned, the  collection  of  the  taxes  impeded,  and  our  national  character  im- 
peached. But  as  I  send  you  the  several  papers  I  have  received  on  that  sub- 
ject, I  need  not  enlarge  further  than  remark,  that  if  this  most  important  part 
of  our  territory  be  lopped  off,  we  lose  that  barrier  for  which  our  people  have 
long  and  often  fought,  that  nursery  of  soldiers  from  which  future  armies  may 
be  levied,  and  through  which  it  will  be  almost  impossible  for  our  enemies  to 


APPENDIX.  vii 

penetrate  :  we  shall  aggrandize  the  new  state,  whose  connexions,  views,  and 
designs  we  know  not,  shall  cease  to  be  formidable  to  our  savage  neighbours,  or 
respectable  to  our  western  settlements,  at  present,  and  in  future. 

While  these  and  many  other  matters  were  contemplated  by  the  executive, 
it  is  natural  to  suppose,  the  attempt  for  separation  was  discouraged,  by  every 
lawful  means  ;  the  chief  of  which  was,  displacing  such  of  the  field  officers  of 
militia,  in  Washington  county,  as  were  active  partizans  for  separation,  in 
order  to  prevent  the  weight  of  office  being  cast  in  the  scale  against  this  state : 
to  this  end  a  proclamation  was  issued,  declaring  the  militia  law  of  the  last 
session,  in  force,  in  that  county,  and  appointments  of  officers  were  made 
agreeably  to  it. 

I  hope  to  be  excused  for  expressing  a  wish,  that  the  assembly,  in  deliberat- 
ing on  this  affair,  will  prefer  lenient  measures  in  order  to  reclaim  our  erring 
fellow-citizens.  Their  taxes  have  run  into  three  years  arrear,  and,  thereby, 
grown  to  an  amount  beyond  the  ability  of  many  to  discharge,  while  the  sys- 
tem of  our  trade  has  been  such,  as  to  render  their  agriculture  unproductive 
of  money  ;  and  I  cannot  but  suppose  that  if,  even  the  warmest  supporters  of 
separation  had  seen  the  mischievous  consequences  of  it,  they  would  have  re- 
tracted; and  condemned  that  intemperance  in  their  own  proceedings,  which 
opposition  in  sentiments  is  too  apt  to  produce. 

A  letter  from  the  countess  of  Huntingdon  and  another  from  Sir  James  Jay, 
expressing  her  intentions  to  attempt  the  civilization  of  the  Indians,  are  also 
sent  you.  It  will  rest  with  the  assembly  to  decide  upon  the  means  for  exe- 
cuting this  laudable  design,  that  reflects  so  much1  honour  on  that  worthy 
lady. 

By  a  resolution  of  the  last  assembly,  the  auditors  were  prevented  from  li- 
quidating the  claims  of  the  officers  and  soldiers,  after  the  1st  day  of  May  last. 
Although  the  wisdom  of  such  a  measure  must  be  admitted,  yet  several  cases 
have  come  to  my  knowledge  where  claims,  founded  upon  the  clearest  prin- 
ciples of  justice,  have  been  rejected  by  reason  of  that  restriction :  and  when 
I  consider  that  the  claimants  will  be  found  to  consist,  in  considerable  degree, 
of  widows,  orphans,  and  those  who  have  been  taken  prisoners,  I  am  persuad- 
ed the  assembly  will  think  that  a  rigorous  adherence  to  the  forementioned 
resolution  is  improper,  and  that  justice  will  be  done  to  the  claims  of  those 
few,  whose  poverty,  ignorance,  or  other  misfortunes,  prevented  earlier  appli- 
cations. 

By  Mr.  Ross's  letter,  No.  5,  the  assembly  will  observe  his  demand  against 
the  state,  and  that  it  can  be  properly  discussed  only  by  the  legislature.  Al- 
though the  post  at  Point  of  Fork  has  been  long  occupied,  I  cannot  discover 
the  least  trace  of  title  to  the  ground  vested  in  the  public,  or  any  previous  sti- 
pulation with  the  proprietor  for  the  temporary  possession  of  it.  While  the 
assembly  are  considering  of  a  proper  satisfaction  to  the  owner  for  the  time 
past,  I  trust  provision  will  be  made  to  secure  a  permanent  repository  for  the 
public  arms  and  military  stores,  at  that  or  some  other  place  most  proper  for 
the  purpose. 

The  honourable  William  Nelson  hath  resigned  his  office  as  a  member  of 
the  council,  as  appears  by  his  letter,  No.  6. 


vlii  APPENDIX. 

The  honourable  Henry  Tazewell  esq.  has  been  appointed  a  judge  of  the 
general  court  in  the  room  of  the  honourable  B.  Danbridge  esq.  deceased,  un- 
til the  assembly  shall  signify  their  pleasure. 

The  honourable  Geo.  Muter  esq.  has  been  appointed  a  judge  of  the  gene- 
ral court,  in  Kentucky,  in  the  room  of  Cyrus  Griffin  esq.  who  resigned  his  ap- 
pointment 

Thomas  Massie  esq.  having  resigned  his  appointment  for  opening  a  road 
on  the  north  western  frontier,  Joseph  Neville  esq.  has  been  appointed,  in  his 
room. 

The  report  of  the  commissioners  for  disposing  of  the  Gosport  lands,  No.  9, 
will  explain  to  the  assembly  their  transactions  in  that,  business. 

Mr.  Rene"  Rapicault,  of  New  Orleans,  exhibited  an  account  against  this  com- 
monwealth, for  a  considerable  sum  of  money  which  appears  to  be  due  to  him. 
But  as  it  will  be  found  by  a  reference  to  his  papers,  No.  10,  that  this  debt, 
however  just,  cannot  be  paid  from  any  fund  now  existing,  it  is  submitted  to 
the  legislature  to  make  such  provision  for  its  payment,  as  to  them  shall  seem 
proper. 

The  report  of  the  commissioners  for  extending  the  boundary  line  between 
Virginia  and  Pennsylvania,  No.  11,  will  explain  the  manner  in  which  that  busi- 
ness has  been  executed. 

By  Mr.  Jefferson's  letters  it  appears,  that  the  original  sum  granted  to  pro- 
cure a  statue  of  General  Washington,  will  be  deficient.  The  further  sum 
wanting,  together  with  the  reasons  for  increasing  the  expense  of  the  work, 
will  appear  by  Mr.  Jefferson's  correspondence,  No.  12. 

The  crews  of  the  boats  Liberty  and  Patriot,  were  ordered  to  be  enlisted  for 
12  months  from  August  last,  unless  sooner  discharged.  This  was  done  in  order 
that  the  assembly  might,  if  they  judged  proper,  determine  to  discontinue 
them,  or  if  they  are  retained,  make  suitable  provision  for  their  support:  hi- 
therto, that  has  been  defrayed  out  of  the  contingent  fund.  But  the  great  va- 
riety of  expenses  charged  on  that  fund,  make  it  necessary,  in  future,  to  pro- 
vide some  other  mode  of  support  for  them.  The  assembly  will,  no  doubt, 
observe  in  the  course  of  their  deliberations  on  the  subject  of  revenue,  that  it 
is  necessary  for  the  executive  to  commission  the  officers.  The  officer  com- 
manding one  of  these  boats  has  detected  several  persons  attempting  to  evade 
the  payment  of  duty,  and  in  compliance  with  the  law,  as  he  supposes,  took 
bonds  for  the  payment  of  the  penalties  imposed  for  making  false  entries.  But 
it  seems  there  are  great  difficulties  in  recovering  judgment  on  these  bonds, 
owing  to  ambiguity  in  the  law  respecting  the  subject.  The  assembly  will 
apply  such  remedy  for  this  evil,  as  they  think  proper. 

Application  hath  been  made  to  the  executive,  on  the  subject  of  paying  in- 
to the  continental  treasury,  warrants  for  interest  due  on  loan  office  certifi- 
cates, and  other  liquidated  claims  against  the  continent.  And  although  there 
can  be  no  doubt  that  payments,  made  by  the  treasurer  to  the  continental  re- 
ceiver, may  include  the  proportion  of  warrants  specified  by  congress  in  their 
act  of  the  28th  of  April  1784,  yet  the  receiver  when  possessed  of  the  cash,  al- 
though it  was  unaccompanied  by  any  warrants,  does  not  conceive  himself  jus- 
tified in  parting  with  any  money  in  exchange  for  them.     So  that  until  the  as- 


APPENDIX.  ix 

sembly  shall  interpose,  by  making  these  warrants  receivable  at  the  treasury, 
our  citizens  will  suffer  great  injury,  and  be  deprived  of  a  facility  enjoyed  by 
the  citizens  of  the  other  states. 

The  sum  of  money  allowed  by  the  assembly  in  their  resolution  of  the 
13th  of  June  17"83,  for  compiling,  printing,  and  binding  the  laws,  has  proved 
inadequate  to  the  purpose  ;  five  hundred  pounds  having  been  expended  in 
the  printing,  and  two  hundred  and  fifty  engaged  to  be  divided  among  the 
gentlemen  who  made  the  compilation ;  so  that  nothing  is  left  to  pay  for  the 
binding. 

I  cannot  forbear  informing  the  assembly,  that  many  county  courts  have 
failed  to  recommend  sheriffs  in  the  months  of  June  and  July.  In  consequence 
of  this,  many  of  the  counties  will  be  without  sheriffs,  in  as  much  as,  the  exe- 
cutive think  they  have  no  power  to  issue  commissions  in  such  cases.  As  this 
evil  threatens  so  many  parts  of  the  state  with  anarchy,  I  have  no  doubt  of  the 
legislature  remedying  it  with  all  possible  despatch. 

I  have  the  honour  to  be,  with  great  regard, 
Your  most  obedient, 

Humble  servant, 


P.  HENRY. 


The  Honourable  the  Speaker  of  the  House  of  Delegates. 


Note  C. 

Judge  Tucker,  in  his  edition  of  Blackstone,  having  fallen  into  Mr.  Ran- 
dolph's mistake,  in  regard  to  the  case  of  Josiah  Philips,  the  following  note 
has  been  furnished  to  the  author  by  the  gentleman  who  was  the  chairman  of 
the  committee. 

"  The  case  of  Josiah  Philips,  I  find  strangely  represented  by  Judge  Tucker 
and  Mr.  Edmund  Randolph,  and  very  negligently  vindicated  by  Mr.  Henry. 
That  case  is  personally  known  to  me,  because  I  was  of  the  legislature  at  the 
time,  was  one  of  those  consulted  by  Mr.  Henry,  and  had  my  share  in  the  pass- 
age of  the  bill.  I  never  before  saw  the  observations  of  those  gentlemen, 
which  you  quote  on  this  case,  and  will  now,  therefore,  briefly  make  some 
strictures  on  them. 

"  Judge  Tucker,  instead  of  a  definition  of  the  functions  of  bills  of  attainder, 
has  given  ajust  diatribe  against  their  abuse.  The  occasion  and  proper  office 
of  a  bill  of  attainder  is  this  ;  when  a  person  charged  with  a  crime,  withdraws 
from  justice,  or  resists  it  by  force,  either  in  his  own  or  a  foreign  country,  no 
other  means  of  bringing  him  to  trial  or  punishment  being  practicable,  a  spe- 
cial act  is  passed  by  the  legislature,  adapted  to  the  particular  case  ;  this  pre- 
scribes to  him  a  sufficient  term  to  appear  and  submit  to  a  trial  by  his  peers, 
declares  that  his  refusal  to  appear  shall  be  taken  as  a  confession  of  guilt,  as 
in  the  ordinary  case  of  an  offender  at  the  bar  refusing  to  plead,  and  pro- 
nounces the  sentence  which  would  have  been  rendered  on  his  confession  or 
conviction  in  a  court  of  law.    No  doubt  that  these  acts  of  attainder  have  been 

2* 


x  APPENDIX. 

abused  in  England  as  instruments  of  vengeance  by  a  successful  over  a  de- 
feated party.  Bat  what  institution  is  insusceptible  of  abuse,  in  wicked  hands  ? 

"  Again,  the  judge  says, '  the  court  refused  to  pass  sentence  of  execution 
pursuant  to  the  directions  of  the  act.'  The  court  could  not  refuse  this,  be- 
cause it  was  never  proposed  to  them,  and  my  authority  for  this  assertion  shall 
be  presently  given. 

"  For  the  perversion  of  a  fact  so  intimately  known  to  himself,  Mr.  Randolph 
can  be  excused  only  by  our  indulgence  for  orators  who,  pressed  by  a  power- 
ful adversary,  lose  sight,  in  the  ardour  of  conflict,  of  the  rigorous  accuracies 
of  fact,  and  permit  their  imagination  to  distort  and  colour  them  to  the  views 
of  the  moment.  He  was  attorney  general  at  the  time,  and  told  me  himself, 
the  first  time  I  saw  Mm  after  the  trial  of  Philips,  that  when  taken  and  deliver- 
ed up  to  justice,  he  had  thought  it  best  to  make  no  use  of  die  act  of  attainder, 
and  to  take  no  measure  under  it ;  that  he  had  indicted  him,  at  the  common 
law,  either  for  murder  or  robbeiy,  (I  forget  which,  and  whether  for  both,) 
that  he  was  tried  on  this  indictment  in  the  ordinary  way,  found  guilty  by  the 
jury,  sentenced  and  executed  under  the  common  law  ;  a  course  which  every 
one  approved,  because  the  first  object  of  the  act  of  attainder  was,  to  bring  him 
to  fair  trial.  Whether  .Mr.  Randolph  was  right  in  this  information  to  me,  or, 
when  in  the  debate  with  Mr.  Henry,  he  represents  this  atrocious  offender 
as  sentenced  and  executed  under  the  act.  of  attainder,  let  the  record  of  the 
case  decide. 

"  'Without  being  confronted  with  his  accusers  and  witnesses,  without  the 
privilege  of  calling  for  evidence  in  his  behalf,  he  was  sentenced  to  death,  and 
afterwards  actually  executed.'  I  appeal  to  the  universe  to  produce  one  sin- 
gle instances  from  the  first  establishment  of  government  in  this  state  to  the 
present  dav,  where,  in  a  trial  at  bar,  a  criminal  has  been  refused  confronta- 
tion with  his  accusers  and  witnesses,  or  denied  the  privilege  of  calling  for 
evidence  in  his  behalf.  Had  it  been  done  in  this  case,  I  would  have  asked  of 
the  attorney  general.,  why  he  proposed  or  permitted  it  ?  But,  without  having 
seen  the  record,  I  will  venture,  on  the  character  of  our  courts,  to  deny  that  it 
was  done.  But  if  Mr.  Randolph  meant,  only,  that  Philips  had  not  these  ad- 
vantages, on  the  passage  of  the  bill  of  attainder,  how  idle  to  charge  the  legis- 
lature with  omitting  to  confront  the  culprit  with  his  witnesses,  when  he  was 
standing  out  in  arms,  and  in  defiance  of  their  authority;  and  their  sentence 
was  to  take  effect,  only  on  his  own  refusal  to  come  in  and  be  confronted.  We 
must  either,  therefore,  consider  this  as  a  mere  hyperbolism  of  imagination, 
in  the  heat  of  debate,  or,  what  I  should  rather  believe,  a  defective  statement 
by  the  reporter  of  Mr.  Randolph's  argument.  I  suspect  this  last  the  rather, 
because  this  point  in  the  charge  of  Mr.  Randolph,  is  equally  omitted  in  the 
defence  of  Mr.  Henry.  This  gentleman  must  have  known  that  Philips  was 
tried  and  executed  under  the  common  law,  and  yet,  according  to  this  report, 
he  rests  his  defence  on  a  justification  of  the  attainder  only.  But  all  who 
knew  Mi*.  Henry,  know,  that  when  at  ease  in  arg-ument,  he  was  sometimes  care- 
less, not  giving  himself  the  trouble  of  ransacking  either  his  memory  or  ima- 
gination for  all  the  topics  of  his  subject,  or  his  audience  that  of  hearing  them. 
Ko  man  on  earth  knew  better,  when  he  had  said  enough  for  his  hearers. 


APPENDIX.  xi 

"  Mr.  Randolph  charges  us  with  having  read  the  bill  three  times  in  the  same 
day.  I  do  not  remember  the  fact,  nor  whether  this  was  enforced  on  us  by 
the  urgency  of  the  ravages  of  Philips,  or  of  the  time  at  which  the  bill  was  in- 
troduced. I  have  some  idea  it  was  at  or  near  the  close  of  the  session.  The 
journals,  which  I  have  not,  will  ascertain  this  fact." 

The  following  proceedings  against  Josiah  Philips  and  his  associates,  are 
extracted  from  the  records  of  the  general  court ;  and  are  followed  by  the  no- 
tice of  the  execution  of  these  men,  from  the  public  prints  of  the  day  :  which 
it  is  hoped,  will  put  a  final  end  to  this  mistake,  so  little  to  the  honour  of  our 
revolution. 

"  Virginia,  to  wit : 

"  The  jurors  for  the  commonwealth,  upon  their  oath  present :  That  Jo- 
siah Philips,  late  of  the  parish  of  Lynhaven,  in  the  county  of  Princess  Ann, 
labourer,  on  the  ninth  day  of  May,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  se- 
ven hundred:  and  seventy  eight,  with  force  and  arms  at  the  parish  aforesaid, 
in  the  county  aforesaid,  in  the  highway  of  the  commonwealth  there,  in  and 
upon  one  James  Hargrove,  in  the  peace  of  God  and  of  the  commonwealth, 
then  and  there  being,  feloniously  did  make  an  assault,  and  him,  the  said 
James  Hargi'ove,  in  bodily  fear  and  dang-er  of  his  life,  in  the  highway  afore- 
said, then  and  there  feloniously  did  put,  and  twenty-eight  men's  felt-hats  of 
the  value  of  twenty  shillings  each,  and  five  pounds  of  twine  of  the  value  of 
five  shillings  each  pound,  of  the  goods  and  chattels  of  the  said  James  Har- 
grove, from  the  person  and  against  the  will  of  the  said  James  Hargrove,  in 
the  highway  aforesaid,  then  and  there  feloniously  and  violent!)-  did  steal,  take 
and  carry  away,  against  the  peace  and  dignity  of  the  commonwealth. 

Witnesses James  Hargrove, 

Benjamin  Griffith, 

William  Lovett,  {^  Sworn  in  court,  Oct.  20th,  1778. 

Polly  Davis, 

Horatio  Davis,  and         ^  John  Mat." 

John  Matthias. 

The  above  indictment  is  thus  indorsed  : 

"An  indictment  against  Josiah  Philips  for  robbery,"  (in  Mr.  Randolph's 
hand  writing.)  "  A  true  bill.     Wm.  Holt,  foreman." 

a  Virginia. 

"In  the  General  Court,  20th  October,  1778. 
"  Josiah  Philips,  late  of  the  parish  of  Lynhaven,  in  the  county  of  Princess 
Ann,  labourer,  who  stands  indicted  for  robbery,  was  led  to  the  bar  in  custody  of 
the  keeper  of  the  public  gaol,  and  was  thereof  arraigned,  and  pleaded  not 
guilty  to  the  indictment,  and  for  his  trial  put  himself  upon  God  and  the  coun- 
try. Whereupon  came  a  jury,  to  wit :  James  Letate,  Thomas  Stanley,  Gilliam 
Booth,  Stapleton  Crutchfield,  John  Tankerley,  John  Draper,  Leonard  Hen- 
ley, Micajah  Chiles,  Richard  Swepson,  William  James  Lewis,  Thomas  Cowles 
and  Ambrose  Raines,  whoj  being  elected,  tried  and  sworn  the  truth  of,  and 


xii  APPENDIX. 

upon  premises  to  speak,  and  having  heard  the  evidence,  upon  their  oath  do  say, 
that  the  said  Josiah  Philips  is  guilty  of  the  robbery  aforesaid  in  manner  and 
form  as  in  the  indictment  against  him  is  alledged,  and  that  he  had  neither 
lands  or  tenements,  goods  or  chattels  at  the  time  of  committing  the  said  rob- 
bery, nor  at  any  time  since,  to  their  knowledge  ;  and  thereupon  he  is  remand- 
ed to  gaol. 

"October the  27th,  1778. 
"Josiah  Philips,  late  of  the  parish  of  Lynhaven  in  the  county  of  Princess 
Ann,  labourer,  who  stands  convicted  of  robbery,  was  again  led  to  the  bar  in  cus- 
tody of  the  keeper  of  the  public  gaol,  and  thereupon,  It  being  demanded  of 
him  if  any  thing  he  had  or  knew  to  say  for  himself,  why  the  court,  here,  to 
judgment  and  execution  of  and  upon  the  premises,  should  not  proceed,  he 
said  he  had  nothing  but  what  he  had  before  said.  Therefore,  It  is  considered 
by  the  court,  that  he  be  hanged  by  the  neck  until  he  be  dead. 

«  October  28th,  1778. 
"  John  Lowry,  John  Reizen,  and  Charles  Bowman,  for  murder,  Josiah  Phi- 
lips, James  Hodges,  Hemy  M'Lalen,  and  Robert  Hodges  for  robbery,  James 
Randolph  for  horsestealing,  Joseph  Turner,  otherwise  called  Josiah  Blanken- 
ship  for  burglary,  and  John  Highwarden  for  grand  larceny,  being  under  sen- 
tence of  death  by  the  judgment  of  the  court  yesterday  passed  against  them 
for  their  said  offence  :  It  is  awarded  that  execution  of  the  said  sentence,  be 
severally  made  and  done  upon  them  the  said  John  Lowry,  John  Reizen, 
Charles  Bowman,  Josiah  Philips,  James  Hodges,  Henry  M'Lalen,  Robert 
Hodges,  James  Randolph,  Joseph  Turner,  otherwise  called  Josiah  Blanken- 
ship,  and  John  Highwarden,  by  the  sheriff  of  York  county,  on  Friday  the 
fourth  day  of  December  next,  between  the  hours  of  ten  and  twelve  in  the 
forenoon,  at  the  usual  place  of  execution. 
Copies — Teste, 

Peyton  Drew,  C.  G.  C." 

Extract  from  Dixon  and  Hunter's  paper  of  October  the  30th,  1778. 
"  Williamsburg. — At  a  general  court,  begun  and  held  at  the  capitol  the 
10th  instant, the  following  criminals  were  condemnedto  suffer  death :  Charles 
Bowman,  from  Prince  George,  for  murder ;  John  Lowry,  from  Bedford,  for 
ditto ;  Josiah  Philips,  James  Hodges,  Robert  Hodges,  and  Henry  JVP  Clalen,  from 
Princess  Ann,  for  robbery  ;  John  Highwarden,  from  Fauquier,  for  grand  lar- 
ceny ;  Joseph  Turner,  alias  Josiah  Blankenship,  from  Alb  emarle,  for  burglary ; 
and  James  Randolph,  from  Culpeper,  for  horsestealing." 

Extract  from  Dixon  and  Hunter's  paper  of  December  4th,  1778. 

"  Williamsburg. — This  day  were  executed,  at  the  gallows  near  this  city, 
pursuant  to  their  sentence,  the  following  criminals,  viz  :  Josiah  Pldlips,  Henry 
M'Clanen,  Robert  Hodges,  John  Reason,  and  Josiah  Blankenship." 


Gj*  The  distance  of  the  press  from  the  author's  residence,  has  necessarily 
placed  its  correction  in  other  hands  :  and  various  errors  have  unavoidably  oc- 
curred, which  the  reader  is  requested  to  correct,  according  to  the  list  of  errata 
below. 


ERRATA. 


Page  2,  line  2  from  the  bottom,  and  page  344,  line  16,  for  encroachment,  read  encroachments. 

4,  7  from  the  bottom,  and  elsewhere,  for  confronted,  read  controlled. 

4,  3  from  the  bottom,  for  those  amusements,  read  these  amusements. 

5,  7,  for  laying  along,  read  lying  along. 

10,  9  from  the  bottom,  for  which  his  attempts,  read  while  his  attempts. 

10,  3,  for  excellences,  read  excellencies :  also  in  p.  54,  line  3. 

20,  5,  for  provision,  read  provisions. 

27,  12,  for  acclamation,  read  acclamations. 

36,  15,  16,  for  Roscius  the  actor,  read  Uoscius  of  Ameria. 

41,  12,  dele  and. 

41,  2  from  the  bottom,  for  those,  read  t/iese :  this  mistake  occurs  in  several  other  places. 

46,  12,  for  Edward,  read  Edmund. 

47,  9  from  the  bottom,  the  words  George  Wythe  should  commence  a  paragraph. 
54,  19,  for  stronghold,  read  den. 

54,  26,  for  gift,  read  gifts. 

65,  6  and  7,  for  .flattered  themselves  they  had  bound  him3  read  flattered  themselves  that  they 

had  bound  him. 

83,  10,  for  recision,  read  rescission. 

85,  8  from  the  bottom,  for  passed,  read  pressed. 

86,  land  2,  for  that  house,  read  the  public  councils. 

87,  1,  for  gentleman,  read  gentlemen. 
89,  4,  for  bar,  read  bars. 

119,  13  and  14,  for  ride  in  it,  read  ride  in  and  direct  it. 

120,  14  from  the  bottom,  for  Is  it,  read  Is  this. 

131,  5,  for  resistance  in  concert,  read  united  resistance. 

136,  5,  for  expressions,  read  expression. 

153,  9  from  the  bottom,  for  attentoin,  read  attention. 

196,  10  of  the  note,  for  a  recital,  read  the  recital. 

239,  1  of  the  note,  for  skirmishers,  read  skirmishes. 

240,  6,  for  benefit,  read  benefits. 

241,  1,  for  <o  procure,  read  in  procuring. 

255,  5  from  the  bottom,  for  countenances,  read  countenance. 

283,  18,  for  clauses,  read  clause. 

295,  16— 17,  for  j&rj/  ,/orw,  read  ;to  ./?«•;/  ,/orce, 

304,  after  the  word  years,  put  a  comma  instead  of  the  semicolon. 

309,  line  23—24,  for  admitting  the  submission,  vead  submitting  the  decision. 

315,  5  from  the  bottom,  for.  federal  court,  read  federal  circuit  court. 

319,  4,  for  Mr.  inra's,  read  and  Mr.  Innis. 

326,  6,  for  opposite,  read  apposite. 

328,  3,  dele  to. 

331,  6,  for  treatises,  read  treaties. 

351,  10,  for  7uto  tr,  read  what  are. 

353,  12,  for  rights,  read  n^/if. 

373,  13,  dele  you. 

374,  14,  for  patriotic  face,  read  patriot  fare. 

387,  last,  for  j/oim-  affectionate  father,  read  j/o«r  €i>?r  affectionate  father. 

396,  11,  for  majority  in  the  house,  read  majority  of  the  house. 

417,  4  of  the  note,  for  formerly,  read  formally. 

419,  5  of  the  note,  for  they  had  commenced  too,  read  /he y  had  commenced  it  too. 

425,  10  from  the  bottom,  for  from  other  orators-  read  some  other  orators. 


I  6 


RARE  BOOK 
COLLECTION 


THE  LIBRARY  OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF 

NORTH  CAROLINA 

AT 

CHAPEL  HILL 


E302.6 
,H5 
W69 
c.2 


